Letters from Maluku
by jazzyproz
Summary: A spin off from my multi-chpt Can You Save Her Agent Booth. Brennan lets Booth read the unmailed letters she wrote to him while they were separated. A story of related One Shots, each chapter will contain a letter.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N Hello and welcome! **

**In chapter 23 of my multi-chapter piece, 'Can You Save Her, Agent Booth,' I touched on the fact that Booth hadn't heard from Brennan for the entire seven months while they were apart, he in Afghanistan and she in Maluku. In my story, Brennan admits to Booth that she wrote to him often, and that she kept all the letters, never having mailed them. He mentions that he would like to read them someday, but I never again explored that aspect of my story. This is my spin-off from that little snippet of time. **

**I intend to update this from time to time, but not as regularly as I did my first multi-chapter piece, because I will be working on another multi chap as well – the sequel to CYSHAB. This is intended for me to be able to escape to, from time to time, posting each chapter almost as a separate One-shot, though they will all be related in the sense that each chapter will contain a letter from Brennan. These chapters will take place several months after B&B enter into their exclusive relationship, which followed her tragic ordeal at the start of CYSHAB. You don't need to have read the previous piece in order to understand this series, but you may be a little lost in some of the context surrounding the letters, as I will be referencing past experiences that occurred in my story, and not in the show. **

**This is rated M.**** Each chapter may or may not contain matters that fall categorically under the Mature-Readers-Only-heading, so to be on the safe side, I am rating the entire piece as M. **

**As always, my disclaimer is simply that I do not own Bones or its characters. I make no money from this venture, only the gratification of the reviews that you leave me after reading it! (HINT) **

Booth and Brennan were snuggled on the couch, watching television at her apartment one evening when Brennan felt Booth's eyes staring at her. She turned her head and smiled up from her place against his shoulder.

"What are you thinking about, Booth?" She met his lips as he lowered them to hers in a soft kiss.

"Something that you told me… After I brought you back from Maryland, to my apartment… that night…" Booth's words died off. Neither of them needed reminding of the time to which he was referring. Her kidnapping and subsequent torture, although now in the past by several months, was still fresh in her mind many nights while she slept. The nightmares had lessened, but had yet to subside completely. Often she would awaken to Booth soothing her and whispering nonsensical words of comfort into her hair or neck or forehead – wherever his lips rested at the time when her nightmarish visions plagued her. She was only just starting to control the sudden overwhelming anxiety that controlled her body from time to time from the simplest of triggers – a certain smell like that of the mildew covered mattress to which she had been tethered, the echoic sounds reminiscent of those she'd hear in the damp basement whenever her tormentor trotted down the stone stairs, or even a sound _similar_ to that of his painful whip, whether it be a sound effect in an action movie they were watching or from a vehicle backfiring below the apartment window. Booth had warned her that her emotional recovery time would be a much longer endeavor than her physical healing, but she hadn't realized just how deeply affected she had been during that short time of capture. Every day, she was thankful that Booth was at her side and that he was willing to help her through these difficult steps.

Refocusing on what his memory of their many conversations might be, she nodded slowly. "OK, what did I mention to you that night that has you concentrating so deeply tonight?"

"You mentioned that you wrote to me while you were in Maluku. And that you had kept the letters." He shrugged, not wanting to get his hopes up too high, and hoping to convey a sense of nonchalant curiosity. "I just wondered if, you know, you would let me read them…? Someday?"

She smiled at his awkwardness. Her normally cock-sure partner had a vulnerable side about which she had been learning more since they'd spent most of their evenings at either her place or his since resuming their working schedule. Brennan could count on one hand the number of nights they spent apart.

…The first time was when she was away for a book signing and he could not accompany her on the overnight trip.

…The second and third times were when he was on a stake-out and had refused to let her stay with him, though she promised to remain silent throughout the job. He told her that he would not be able to concentrate with her napping beside him and he would worry too much about her safety, should the stake-out go south.

…The fourth time was because she was being overly-stubborn, resulting in their first real fight as a couple, during which time she went home and cried into her pillow, his pillow, all night, and he spent his night pacing around his living room until his war-torn feet ached, matching the ache in his heart.

…The fifth, and final, time was when she had been quarantined to the lab, thanks to one of Hodgins' genius-experiments-gone-wrong. But Booth had spent the night in his SUV, in the employee parking garage of the Jeffersonian, just in case she needed him for anything during the night.

And during all the other nights and evenings, weekends and work days spent together, Brennan learned a little more about Booth's insecurities, many of which he hadn't let her see before. And _all_ of which he still kept hidden from the rest of the world, swearing her to secrecy from telling anyone, especially Sweets, who had happily regained his favorite team-council-sessions, since their approval to be in a personal relationship and still remain partners.

She sat upright slowly, dislodging herself from Booth's side. "You can read them any time you want, Booth. I'll go get them for you." She stood, but paused when he took her hand in his.

"You don't have to let me read them if you don't want. I just wondered… I dunno… I just thought that maybe I could learn about what you were thinking…feeling…during those months…"

Sitting back down beside Booth, she kept hold of his hand. "Booth, I wrote the letters for you to read. I had every intention of mailing them to you… initially… But then…" She lowered her eyes to their intertwined fingers as she sighed quietly. "Well, you'll see when you get to it, but at one point I started to doubt whether or not I should send them…I started to doubt how you might feel about hearing from me and the things I was writing about." Brennan raised her eyes to her partner's, holding back unshed tears for a time that she felt not only lonely, but _alone_. "It will make more sense as you read them, Booth. I'll be right back." She laid his hand onto the narrow strip of couch cushion between them as she rose to her feet once again and headed to the back of the apartment, into her office.

Booth watched as she left the room, wondering what could have possibly happened to cause her to doubt herself, or to question his desire to have received communication from her. Knowing that she wasn't going to verbally explain anything further, he resigned himself to waiting until he got to the point in his reading at which she apparently changed her mind about communicating with him.

He smiled at the woman he loved as she reappeared at the end of the hallway, carrying a pile of papers in her arms. He thought she was beautiful, graceful…She was the most precious thing in the world to him, and he was astonished every day that he was finally allowed to be with her, that she loved him in return, and they were engaged to be married. He smiled as she approached and stretched his arm out on the back of the couch waiting for her.

She slipped back onto the couch, folding her legs beneath her and moved easily into her favorite position, tucked against his side with his arm draped across her shoulder as he pulled her close. She placed on his lap, a bundle of un-mailed envelopes, tied up like a package with a piece of twine wrapped around them in a gift bow fashion. With a small smile, she noted his raised eyebrow at the size of the pile. "There are quite a few letters here, Booth. You won't get through them all at once."

"Well then, how about if I read one every now and then, maybe every few days…as if I was actually receiving them…?" He smirked at her and pressed a kiss to her temple.

She nodded in agreement with his suggestion and caught his eyes with hers. "Would you rather be alone while you read, Booth? I can go into my office…"

"No," he cut her off immediately. "I want you right where you are, babe." He pulled her tight against him as his voice grew husky. "I always want you here, Bones. No matter what I'm doing. Always…"

Brennan ducked her head at his comment. It had been months, and she still wasn't used to his constant adoration or compliments. Brennan had always been a confident woman; confident in her appearance, in her intelligence, in her abilities. Yet, Booth's constant attention to her was something to which she still was unaccustomed. But it pleased her…_he_ pleased her…and she aimed to please him. With a shy smile, she nodded and tucked further into him, pointing to the letter on top. "OK, you can open that one first."

_Day Zero_

_Dear Booth, _

_It's been precisely 2 hours and 18 minutes since we said goodbye at the airport. Thank you for coming to see me off. I know we said goodbye last night over dinner, but it meant so much to me that you came today. There was a small part of my mind that wondered if you would risk reprimand to come say goodbye, and another part, the logical part, told me that you wouldn't. I am glad my logic was mistaken. _

_Booth, something is bothering me. I miss you. Already. This is not normal. You know as well as I do that we have spent time apart in the past. Days, weeks, months…Why does today feel so different? Why does this parting seem so… definite? So final? I am confused, and as you know, I don't like feeling confused. Whenever I'm confused, I come to you for clarification. But you're not here. I can't call you. It's now been 2 hours and 26 minutes. 27 minutes. _

_I find it disconcerting that we've not even been apart a day… If you were here, we could talk; I know you would be able to interpret the source of my discomfort. _

_When we parted, and I told you not to be a hero, I hope you know I meant that as a compliment. You are a hero already, Booth. I know that your valor and dedication to our country will override your self-preservation-instinct. I hope that you don't place yourself in unnecessary danger. I know that's asking a lot of you, especially as you are going to a warzone. But, Booth, I won't be there to have your back; to help keep you safe…you won't have me, your partner, at your side… _

_I know… I know…I can hear your voice in my head now, telling me that you have your 'Brothers in Arms' to help guard you, but it's not the same, Booth. I'm used to being the one to help keep you safe. Does that make me selfish? Deep down, I know that your Army Comrades possess the capabilities to protect you better than I ever could, but something inside my brain wishes that I was going with you; or that you were coming with me. _

_I don't know when I will get the chance to mail this, or how long it will take to reach you. However, when you do finally receive it and read it, please know that you are missed. Already. (Yes, I know I am repeating myself. But it is a sentiment I thought was worth reiteration.)_

_~Bones_

_PS: I find that I am unsure of the proper closing words to choose. "Fondly" is too acquaintance-like. "Sincerely" is too formal. "Love"…. Is this an appropriate closing for partners? "Always" might be the best choice…after all I will always be your 'Bones', and no one else's. Though, I am sure you know that I do not agree with the possession of other human beings, I hope you understand what I mean. _

_PPS: It has now been 2 hours and 48 minutes. I feel better after writing this. Thank you, Booth. _

_Always, _

_Bones_

Booth folded the letter and replaced it into the envelope out of which it came. He studied her elegant handwriting on the front of the envelope, tracing it lightly with the rough pad of his thumb. He kissed the top of her head as she remained silent, waiting for him to comment on her words.

"Thank you, Bones." His words were whispered and full of emotion as he breathed into her hair. He hated that she was sitting on that airplane, unsure of her own emotions, not understanding her own anxiety. Hated that he allowed them to part ways without insisting that they discuss _in depth_ what had happened between them on the steps at the Hoover and during every awkward interaction that followed. "I love you, Baby."

She turned teary eyes up to him, finally able to understand why she was so terribly disturbed as her plane ascended into the skies,beginning what turned out to be a 7-month separation from her partner. She was in love with him, and she hadn't told him. He went off to war not knowing her true feelings for him. And she let him go.

"I'm so sorry, Booth…I should have told you…I never should have left without telling you… I didn't realize…" she choked back a sob that threatened to escape her throat.

"Shhh…" Booth palmed her cheek and bent down, capturing her lips with his in a tender and heartfelt kiss, effectively cutting off her from her self-condemnation. Pulling back slowly, he wiped his thumb across her cheek, drying the errant tears that were springing free from beneath her brilliant blues. "Don't, Bones. You weren't the only player in this game."

"But, Booth, you _tried_… you tried to tell me…"

He placed a finger on her lips, his calloused pad grazing against her softness as he traced the bottom curve. "No." His tone was final. "We're not going there, Bones. No more regrets, remember? We're here now, we're together…" His words betrayed his own feelings of guilt when the thought about the way he scared her on the steps of the Hoover that night. He took a gamble, and he lost, setting into motion the collapse of their fragile house of cards. She ran to Maluku in search of a dream, _and_ to escape from him; and he shipped off with the Army, intent on training young snipers and determined to get over his love for Temperance Brennan. Regardless of his own internal battles, he refused to let her dwell in those dark moments, refused to let her take the blame for their rough patch, when, in his eyes, he blamed himself.

She grabbed his hand and pulled it away from her face, gripping it tight in her strong grasp. "I know… no more regrets… I _know_ we talked about that… but it still hurts…why does the memory still hurt so much?" Her brow wrinkled and she looked at him pleadingly, asking to understand why she felt so raw, after so many months.

"Bones… They're memories… they're in the past and they can't hurt us anymore. I dare think that the feelings will become less intense as time goes on, but I don't think they will ever dissipate completely…" His brows knitted together in thought. "Look, Bones, don't dwell on it. Just – just accept that it happened and that it's over…We're gonna be fine." He kissed her tenderly when she smiled in resignation.

"Thank you for the letter, Bones. I love that you wrote to me…" He kissed her again, and when he heard her kittenish moan, he felt a tug below his bellybutton and deepened the kiss, pulling her lip between his, tickling it with his tongue, asking for her to open to him. She did so without hesitation, parting her lips and welcoming him into her warmth as she reached up and wrapped her fingers around his neck.

Booth growled into their kiss, feeling a familiar stir increasing down low in his gut. He was still amazed at how this woman affected him. Whether she flashed him that special little crooked smile, melting his heart, or she opened her mouth to his probing tongue, causing his cock to spring to life like a coiled spring, she amazed him…aroused him…drove him crazy with want…

Blindly moving the pile of letters from his lap, Booth stretched his hands around Brennan's ribs and pulled her over to his lap, so she straddled his thighs. She wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders and crushed her body to his, grinding her crotch against his growing erection. Booth's hands slid down from her ribcage to her hips as he helped pull her tighter against his aching cock. Inching his fingers beneath the bottom hem of her tank top, he pushed upwards, peeling the shirt from her body in a painfully slow dance, he was, as always, grateful that she didn't bother wearing a bra when they were home. Trailing his fingertips along her skin lightly, he elicited goose bumps along her surface as he moved. Breaking their kiss just long enough to tear the shirt over her head, Booth's lips immediately found her long, milky-white neck, and latched on as if she were his life-blood.

He sucked hard, intent on marking her, knowing that since it was Friday night, her lovely pale skin would have two days to recover before she had to return to work. She knew what he was doing and let her head fall back, baring the straight column of her throat to his attentions, loving the fact that he still enjoyed claiming her by leaving his marks on her body. It was primal; she knew it was wrong on some level. But she didn't care – she loved him and she loved the uncontrolled side of Seeley Booth.

Removing his mouth from her throat, after making certain that she would see the evidence of his want for her, Booth licked his way over her collarbone, eliciting delicious moans from her deep in her chest, which only served to further arouse him. Her mewling-like noises sent shockwaves strait from his ears to his dick as it strained to break free from his sweats.

"Bones…" he groaned in desperation, "Oh God, baby… how do you do this to me…" His teeth skimmed and nipped as he worked his way down towards her beautiful breasts. Taking one in each hand, he squeezed them and brought his mouth to one perfect nipple before the other. In turn, he teased each pert little nub until she was writhing in frustration.

"Booth, please….Please… No more teasing. Please…I need you." She was breathless. Her core had long pooled with wet warmth, evidence of her desire for him; evidence of what his ministrations did to her. She swiveled her hips against his, trying to create the pressure she so desperately needed to feel. "I need…. I want…" She couldn't think; she couldn't put together a complete, coherent thought.

Booth licked his way back up to her mouth and spoke against her parted lips. "What do you want, Bones? Tell me what you need, baby…I'll give you anything you want…Just tell me…Let me take away all your pain…leave behind just good memories…" As his gravelly voice reached her ears, in between the panting breaths he took while massaging her breasts, taking her nipples between his forefingers and thumbs, pinching them firmly and causing her to squirm even more.

"You…I need you… I want you… Booth, please…"

He wouldn't let her plead any longer. He scooted forward to the front of the couch cushion, allowing her to circle his waist with her long legs so he could stand up, bringing her with him. Once she had locked her ankles behind his back, she stood with ease, cupping her bottom with his right hand and forearm and bracing her back with his left. He moved them quickly through the apartment towards her bedroom, where he deposited her carefully upon the bed, peeling away her little yoga tights as he pulled away. He caught his breath once again as he admired her naked form sprawled across the deep burgundy bedspread.

Brennan was not shy about letting Booth look at her, she knew he was a very visual lover, enjoying the view anytime she allowed it – which she made certain was at least once a day…She silently watched him with darkening eyes as his own dark chocolate browns roamed the length of her body. When he reached her blue oceans, he matched her crooked smile with one of his own and crawled up towards her from his stance at the foot of the bed. He hovered above her body and lowered his lips to just graze hers, not quite kissing.

"How do you want it, Bones? You're calling the shots tonight, baby… Hard and quick? Or perhaps slow and deep and all-night-long?" He tugged her bottom lip into his mouth again, but as she tried to kiss him back, he pulled up, waiting for her to answer with a raise of his eyebrow.

She blushed as she considered his offers and smiled mischievously. Wrapping her arms around his muscular shoulders, she pulled him down to her, loving the feel of his skin beneath her fingers. "Take me, Booth. Hard if you want…Slow if you want…I just want you to fuck me 'til I can't think straight. Fuck me until all I can mutter is your name…"

She knew exactly what she was doing… Not only was Booth a visual lover, but he was also _very_ alpha-male and got _very_ turned on when she swore in bed. That combination was irresistible for her, because when Booth lost control in the bedroom, he always made sure she was well taken care of. Not that he didn't make sure other times, in fact he always made sure she came first – several times – before he would tumble over the edge. But there was something about Seeley Booth turning animalistic on her that she couldn't resist.

"Ah-ha-ha" he chuckled, his voice deep and rough with his insatiable desire for her. Just listening to the way she described what she wanted caused his prick to get harder – if that was even possible… "You wanna play _that_ way, huh, baby?" He reached for her arms and pulled them from behind his shoulders, stretching them above her head while he met her hungry stare. "Well, if Dr. Brennan wants to get fucked, then Dr. Brennan is going to get _well-fucked_." He plunged his tongue into her mouth and took control of the kiss immediately, loving that she didn't put up any sort of struggle to his aggression, but instead welcomed it.

Pressing her arms into the pillow behind her head, he made sure she understood that was where he expected them to stay and she wasn't about to argue. Her body quivered with excitement as he moved his mouth to her jaw then down to her neck, where he paused to suckle at the hollow of her throat. Booth knew that his fiancée wanted it hard and fast, but he couldn't help but take his time licking her skin… He loved how she tasted on his tongue, how silky smooth she felt…and _oh_, the little noises she made drove him insane… So, he lavished attention to her throat and collarbones before traveling down towards the perky, heaving mounds that were begging for more attention. Taking a breast in each hand, Booth took turns sucking and nipping, squeezing and massaging.

Brennan's body writhed beneath her partner's ministrations. She let herself get lost in the feeling of his strong lips, sensual tongue and chesty groans that vibrated from his body into hers with every move. She arched her back off the bed, thrusting her pelvis against his torso, desperate for relief that had been building up to an almost painful level. She could feel her own juices leaking from her core and gently pooling beneath the bottom curve of her ass. She tried to rub against Booth's abdomen, planting her feet flat on the bed and spreading her legs wide to accommodate his body. But he knew what she was up to, and pushed his body away from hers ever so slightly…adding just a little bit of erotic torture as he chuckled against the valley of her delicious tits.

"Please, Booth…" She groaned in that throaty, heady voice that drove him mad. "Don't make me wait so long…." She swiveled higher, catching just a bit of his barely-there tummy, just enough so he could feel her blatant, _wet_ desire for him.

With a feral growl he started to move his mouth further down her body, licking and nipping her sides, waist and stomach playfully before he settled at her bellybutton. He paid her adorable tummy an ample amount of attention with his mouth as he moved his hands up and down her sides, from her hips to her armpits and back down, teasingly playing at the side swells of her breasts as he moved past them. When his palms finally settled at her hips, Booth moved his mouth yet again. From one prominent hip bone to the other until finally his lips… and his tongue… _**oh his tongue**_, she thought…. Was finally just above where she needed him.

Brennan nearly blacked out when he finally dove in without warning, using his fingers to spread her swollen lips apart as his tongue assaulted her alert little clit. Instinctually, her hands flew from their place on the pillow down to his messy, spiky brown hair, where she threaded her wiry fingers to hold him in place. Booth didn't reprimand her for moving her arms; in fact, he simply smiled against her dripping core, taking her little nub carefully between his teeth so he could flick it with his tongue repeatedly. He knew her hands wouldn't stay up there long…he was surprised they had stayed up where he put them for as long as they had… Cockily, he silently congratulated himself for yet another successful round of making his poised and controlled partner lose her composure completely.

Booth moved his hands to Brennan's thighs and spread her wider while pushing them up, essentially tilting her entire pelvis upward. With her body angled like that, he used the flat of his tongue and licked from her opening to her clit and back down again, savoring the juices that were dripping from her body. Understanding this was the position in which he wanted her, Brennan removed her hands from his soft hair and looped her arms around her own bent knees, spreading herself open and freeing up his hands to _(hopefully!)_ torment her body further.

"Perfect, Bones," he mumbled against her sopping wet pussy. "You're perfect… you taste perfect, you look perfect, you feel perfect…_Fucking_ Perfection…" As he spoke, emphasizing his curse word against her soft folds, she could feel the words pulsate from his lips to her body and she groaned in appreciation. "You're like a goddamn goddess, Bones… _Fuck_ yeah…"

Once again, he caught her by surprise when he, without warning, pushed two thick fingers into her body, hard and fast, while suckling her sensitive nub. He pistoned his fore- and middle- fingers in and out at such an incredible speed and pressure that when he raised his eyes from his purchase on her clitty, he could see her tits jiggle with each plunge into her pussy. She met his tempo, thrust for thrust, as he fingered her to the edge of oblivion. When he saw the tell-tale shake of her thigh, he knew she was seconds from breaking… He buried his fingers deep and twisted his hand to he could stroke the upper side of her inner walls while he sucked hard on her clit, holding it between his lips as he hummed, sending shivers to collide with her own building tremors. Letting go of her nub with a loud POP as he pulled his lips away, he breathed hot air against her pussy. "Cum for me, Bones. _Now_…"

As always, she couldn't resist his order to cum, and she screamed his name as she shattered, grinding her body against his hand with vigor as her nectar flowed freely, covering his fingers and seeping onto his upturned palm. Before she could completely ride out the aftershocks of her long-awaited climax, Brennan found herself being bodily turned over and pulled to her knees. The fog in her brain hadn't quite cleared when she felt him spear into her cunt from behind. Taking her the way he wanted to, just like she asked.

Booth pushed her head and shoulders to the pillow as he pulled her hips and ass up to meet him. He didn't even bother to take his sweatpants off completely – _that'll take too long_, he thought… He simply pushed them far enough down to pull his throbbing steel-carved cock from its confines. Coating himself with her juices that had puddled in his palm, he quickly shoved into her, bottoming-out as he felt his heavy balls bounce off her still-engorged clitoris. He placed one splayed palm across the small of her back and held her hip with his other while he watched the place they were joined as he pumped in and out of her body. He pounded her hard and fast, just like he knew she liked, making sure that she could feel his throbbing member press against her cervix at each stab.

Without notice, Brennan felt her body start to tense up. Mere moments after her first plummet over the cliff, her body was gearing up for another, _immediate_, fall. Pushing her hips back to meet Booth's rhythm, Brennan started groaning incoherent syllables. She could feel the blood rushing from her extremities towards her center, building up to what was sure to be a blinding release. She didn't think – she didn't analyze her actions – she didn't try to form a thought…Brennan simply let her natural bodily reaction take control of the situation, no matter how primal…Booth was giving to her exactly what she asked… She could only scream his name, deep and throaty, hoarse and sexy… His name dripped from her lips in a mantra that matched his pace – with each inward thrust, she moaned for him, with each outward pull, she took a breath and readied herself to say it again.

Booth was mesmerized as he listened to her and watched their bodies coming together repeatedly. He loved her ass, _her perfect heart-shaped ass_, he thought. He loved her curves – the roundness of her hips, the inward bend of her waist and the perfect straight line of her spine. He moved the hand that was on her _perfectly-squeezable_ hip and moved it across her bottom, bringing his thumb to the tight little hole that puckered from between her soft cheeks. Without penetration, he placed a slight bit of pressure on the outside of that ring and rubbed little circles, letting the coarseness of his calloused pad cause a friction that sent her overboard once again.

As Brennan felt Booth's ministrations, she knew she couldn't stop from falling once again. She swiveled backwards and felt his thick cock spreading her wide, pressing deeper than any other man had ever pressed and then she felt the slight tickle against her anus…She knew he wasn't pushing in; not long ago, they had discovered that she got much more enjoyment from anal play when he simply rubbed her, tickled the tight muscle when he was taking her from behind. And by the time he was on this fourth or fifth circle, she was trembling.

"You like that, baby? Huh?" He asked her, already knowing the answer, but unable to stop himself from pulling the encouragement from her lungs, if even just for an ego stroke. "This _hard_ enough for ya?" He growled and when he spoke the word 'hard', he shoved himself in with as much for as he could muster.

"Uh…huh…Yeah" She couldn't think…she couldn't talk…

"What's that, Bones?" He bucked into her hard, once again.

"YES!" She screamed into the room. "Yes, Booth…Yeeeee…..uuuhhhh…nnnngggg…" And she splintered once again, quivering as he continued to pump in and out, but with less vigor, letting her ride the waves of her orgasm.

When Booth recognized that his lover was having difficulty remaining in that position, he slowly pulled out and let her roll to her side. He gently rolled her onto her back and finally shucked his pants before pushing his knee between her thighs. "That was good, Bones?" He lowered his lips to hers and spoke against her open mouth. "You were beautiful…You're always beautiful…But Jesus, Bones… When you cum…Oh my God… beautiful…"

He wiggled his hips into place as she opened her legs to him and positioned himself to enter her once again. When he gained her eye contact, and permission that she was OK to keep going, he rocked his hips forward and slowly spread her with his girth once again. This time, despite the fact that he was desperate for his own release, he was going to take it slow. He rolled in and out, pushing all the way in and holding it there for a fraction of a second before pulling back out and repeating the motion.

She reached up and palmed his cheek as she watched his eyes travel over her face, almost in reverence, and she felt a swell of emotion build in her chest. His lips were parted as he breathed, his brown eyes were almost black and tiny beads of sweat had formed on his brow and upper lip. She brought her other hand up and wiped his forehead and settled on his stubbly cheek, dragging her thumb across his upper lip to catch those droplets of moisture as well.

He moved deliberately slow, moving inside of her silky walls, feeling the way they snugged him perfectly, as if they were two pieces of a puzzle that were finally reunited. Her inner muscles worked at milking his dick, but he wanted to make her cum once again before he let himself plummet to the bottom. He kept the leisurely pace as he let one of his hands travel her torso, gently trailing his fingertips across her now-overly-sensitive flushed skin. When he hit a particularly ticklish spot, he craned his neck to kiss it if he could reach, or he would rub it with his palm, as if he were kissing it gently.

"Bones…Let me take all your pain away… no more hurting, baby…" He lowered himself to her further, now resting his weight on his elbows as they dug into the pillow cradling her head. "Let me always take your hurt away…Temperance…" He laid a soft kiss against her mouth and while he kept the pace slow, he pressed further into her core, letting more of his weight fall against her body with each roll of his hips. "I love you…so damn much…"

Brennan looked up at the beautiful man hovering above her and she couldn't stop the flood of emotions from building up inside. This man, her partner, her fiancée, her best friend…He wasn't just giving a part of himself to her, he was giving _all_ of himself – every last ounce of what made him Seeley J Booth… his strength, his passion, his loyalty and so much more. Sure, they had given themselves to each other for months now; but in that very second, on that night after rehashing feelings she didn't understand when she flew into the skies, heading for Maluku, she saw something behind Booth's eyes that she hadn't seen before. She couldn't describe, even to herself, what it was that she saw – but it was a gentle, loving, accepting openness. Not that he hadn't been all those things already, hell he'd been those things for eight years, but as she felt him moving inside, after he had given her exactly what she asked for, and now he was giving her what _he_ wanted…something wonderful snapped. She felt warm tears fall from the corners of her eyes and drip slowly back towards her ears. Still holding his face in her hands, she met his rocking motions by rolling her hips slowly against his.

He watched as her eyes involuntarily fluttered closed from the pleasure she was feeling, and she forced them back open, trying to maintain eye contact with him. He smiled down at her, loving that he could make her feel good. "It's OK, baby, close your eyes…just enjoy it…" He turned and kissed her palm where it held his face and leaned into her grasp as he watched her face.

She did as he asked and let her heavy lids fall into place as she arched her body towards his. She felt him still watching her, but she didn't mind; she loved knowing that he liked how she looked. Brennan let her lips fall open, allowing her to breathe easier, as she felt another round of swells building up in her body. "I love you, Booth…" she whispered into the otherwise quiet room, the only other sounds were her heartbeat and the pattern of his breathing that was like music to her ears. "Amazing…"

He ever-so-slowly started to pick up his pace, nothing frantic, just slightly, once he felt her walls start to squeeze in a very familiar pattern. He smiled more when she let her hands fall from his face and grasp his biceps. He lowered his mouth to the shell of her ear and breathed gentle words of his love. "More beautiful than a spring sunrise, Bones… More brilliant than the stars in the sky… Let go for me…one more time, baby…let me feel you, Bones. Be mine…be with me…complete me, Temperance…"

Temperance Brennan never, ever, considered herself to be a romantic-type, but as it had been since the beginning, Booth made her discover things about herself that no one else had ever done. Listening to his words, feeling his movements and understanding his meaning, she felt almost as if she were floating mid-air… and suddenly, as with everything that evening, she expectantly felt herself on the precipice once again. Her eyes flew open and found his immediately. "Cum with me, Booth. Please…." She started to force him to pick up the pace by rocking her hips faster. He readily obliged by meeting her tempo and began thrusting deeper. "Booth…hhhmmmm…!"

He felt her shatter around his pulsing cock and thrust into her hard once more, pushing himself over the edge with her. He stilled his body as he shot streams of heat deep inside her body, nuzzling into her neck while she milked him dry with her inner caresses. Struggling to maintain his own body weight above her for much longer, his shoulders began to burn and he tried to roll to her side, but instead, she pulled his body down to hers.

"I want to feel you, Booth, it's OK…You're not too heavy, lay on me…" She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held him tight. "I want to feel your body on mine."

"Babe, I'm gunna crush you," his words were winded, but he was concerned that he would hurt her.

"No, you're not." She wrapped her exhausted legs around his thighs and pulled him down, finally feeling him rest his body. "I love you, Booth."

"I love you too, Bones. Thank you for the letter…" he said with a smile against her neck. "Can't wait for the next one to arrive…"

She chuckled at his tired playfulness. "Maybe the mailman will bring one for you tomorrow, Booth. Or maybe the next day…You'll have to wait and see…" She grinned and let her fingers trail the muscles in his shoulders and neck as she felt him place a kiss on her temple. Suddenly, she felt the need to breathe, "OK… that's enough," she playfully pushed him to the side, "you were right… you can crush me…"

He laughed out loud and opened his arm to pull her near. When she was settled in her usual spot – her head on the front of his shoulder, her forehead against his neck, he sighed and, using his toes, he pulled the folded blanket from the foot of the bed and draped it over their cooling bodies. "Good night, Bones. Sweet dreams."

"Good night, Booth…Thank you for reading the letter." She place a gentle kiss against his throat and snuggled into his warmth, letting sleep claim her, knowing that if she needed him, he would be right there at her fingertips.

**Postscript A/N**

**OK, so, what did you think of that? Is this a good idea to explore the unknown letters that Brennan wrote to Booth? Let me know your thoughts PLEASE. Leave me a review, otherwise I won't know if anyone is interested in this idea! **

**Thank you for taking time to read this!**

**Peace & love my friends, **

**~jazzy **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N Welcome back! Your positive responses to my first chapter of 'Letters from Maluku' have been wonderfully surprising. Thank you for eagerly accepting this new piece. I hope you enjoy this new chapter, and I look forward to hearing from you all! (HINT HINT) **

**Disclaimer – nope, I still don't own anything, but by now, I'm sure that HH & Co are looking at my work…and they're gonna call me any day to offer me a job…. Uh, yeah…. That's what's gonna happen… (Dream much, jazzy?)**

**Enjoy… **

Their week had been pure hell.

The case had been grueling and ate up all of their free time and took its toll on both partners. Brennan had worked late at the lab almost every night, barely crawling into bed beside Booth before falling to sleep, curled up against his consistently-warm body. Booth had a physical altercation with the man who turned out to be their murderer, after the woman-beating bastard threatened to put his hands on Brennan.

And Booth missed his partner… Sure, they shared breakfast every morning and saw each other during the days and yes, they slept in the same bed every night.

But that's _all_ they'd done… ate, worked, slept…

After months of being together, they hadn't gone more than three nights in a row without making love, and Booth was feeling the tension of the week building up to an explosive level. His Bones had an undeniable way of calming him just by being near, but he needed more during this particular week; their victim had been a beautiful woman who was beaten to a pulp after enduring hours of painful torture and rape. Booth didn't have to reach far into his imagination to picture his fiancée as a kidnap victim going through the same treatment.

And those visions terrified him. He ordered Sweets to trail Brennan whenever he wasn't with her. She knew what he was doing, and why. While she didn't like it, she didn't fight him; she understood that he was drawing correlations between their victim and herself, and she hated seeing the stress that built up behind his eyes. So she let Sweets follow her, she let Booth get the doors for her, she didn't argue when he wanted her to stop working to eat.

And he reminded her, every chance he had, that he loved her. He would text at random times during the day, or he would call and leave her a voicemail. At the diner, they sat side by side rather than across from each other so he could hold her hand or drape his arm around her shoulders, and as they curled up beneath his comforter, he would nuzzle his nose into her soft hair and whisper his love as they drifted into exhausted slumber.

Finally, they uncovered the evidence they needed and the murderer was all set to rot behind bars. The sonofabitch vowed to exact his revenge on the partners, and _especially_ against Dr. Brennan; '_that bitch will pay_' is what the killer had said…and _that_ was when Booth decided the asshole needed his nose broken. And that was exactly what he did.

That night, they fell into bed together and made slow, lazy love. They explored now-familiar skin with their hands and mouths until they collapsed into motionless piles of goo, wrapped around each other, with promises to pick up where they left off in the morning…after getting some much needed sleep…

The shrill sound of an incoming and _very unwelcome_ call shattered their peaceful slumber at 3:00 am. Booth grabbed his phone from the nightstand dock, growling at the person on the other end.

"This better be good, God_dammit_… "

"Agent Booth?"

Sitting up in sleep-deprived alertness, Booth's eyes jerked open as he tried to snake his arm out from under Brennan's head, hoping to not disturb his girlfriend. While she appreciated his attempts to let her remain sleeping, it was pointless. She patted his chest lightly, indicating to stay where he was, if even just for a few more moments. "It's OK," she whispered hoarsely, "I'm awake, too…"

Clearing his throat, Booth coughed quietly. "Ahem…mmm…Um, yes. What can I do for you, sir?" He winced at the very pregnant pause that served as his response. "Sir? I'm here, sorry. I just was caught off-guard. It's 3:00…"

"I know damn well what time it is, Booth. I received _my_ call 30 minutes ago… that was _2:30_…" Cullen's cranky sarcasm spoke of his own exhaustion. "A body's been found outside of Arlington city limits. Advanced decomposition and an apparent gunshot wound to the head led the locals to call the Hoover, they called me and now I'm calling you. You and Temperance need to get out to the scene and take ownership of the case." Cullen paused and cleared his throat, "I assume I don't need to call Dr. Brennan…She's with you, yes?"

Despite the gravity of the situation, Booth could hear his boss's smile through his words. Booth knew that Cullen had always supported his and Brennan's relationship. And the agent would always remember that his boss was, in a large part, responsible for their permission to remain partners while embarking on their personal journey.

In response, Booth couldn't help but smile down at the beautiful, albeit drowsy woman tucked into his side. "Of course, sir, she's right here." He silently kissed the top of her head and tightened his arm around her.

Brennan craned her head up towards the phone, which Booth still held to his ear. "Good morning, Sam," her voice was thick with sleep, but she smiled at the man who held her.

Booth winked and continued to speak to his boss. "Text me the details and we'll get outta here, sir." Booth's voice was all business now, the grogginess gone and his eyes were alert as he glanced around the darkened room.

"Call me when you know something; but make it after 7:00, huh, Booth?" Cullen had plans of getting another couple of hours of shut-eye before dealing with yet another murder, along with all of the bureaucratic tediousness that goes along with a homicide handled by his division. "Say good morning to Temperance for me, Booth. And good luck." Cullen ended the call and, after forwarding the details to Booth's phone, made his way back into his bedroom, quietly apologizing to his wife for the interruption to their sleep as he crawled back into bed.

B/B/B/B

Booth's crankiness reared its ugly head again when the heavy skies finally broke, sending a torrent of cold rain down onto their crime scene in the inky darkness of early morning. As Brennan and Hodgins scurried around, barking orders at the FBI forensics team assisting in the collecting and preserving of trace evidence, Booth ensured that his scientists received the respect they deserved. He had learned, over the years, that there were always one or two in the group who forgot with whom they were dealing, and would balk at the orders issued by the bossy lady in the blue jumpsuit. It was usually the rookies who made that mistake, but on occasion, Booth had to straighten out even a couple of seasoned guys, reminding them that there were plenty of desk jobs that remained vacant and he could see to it that those work spaces were filled by the end of the day. Generally, he didn't have to issue the warning twice during one investigation, but that didn't stop him from hovering at the perimeter of the crime scene observing everyone's interactions with an eagle-eye and taking-in comments tossed around by those who didn't realize he was listening.

The longer they stood out in the pouring rain, the grumpier Booth felt, but he did his best to curb his desire to shoot something… or someone… Instead, as he followed Brennan around holding a large golf umbrella above her head, he growled orders at people who appeared to be standing around uselessly, directing them about the expectations set forth by the Jeffersonian's contract with the FBI regarding the handling of evidence detriment at crime scenes.

He felt a calming hand come to rest on his shoulder from his side and a tiny bit of tension immediately eased. He stopped yelling at an FBI intern, mid-sentence, to turn to the woman standing beside him. At meeting her cool blue-green eyes, he felt a smile tug one corner of his lips. His voice softened and his eyes warmed ever-so-slightly. "Whatcha got for me, Bones?"

"Everything that I need is already loaded into the vans and heading back to the lab. Hodgins will remain here to supervise the conclusion of the sediment collection. We can go now." She let her hand rest on his forearm as she spoke, knowing that she had the same kind of effect on his moods as he did on hers. "You can stop yelling at everyone now, Booth." She cracked a smile at his surprised look of insult.

"What are you talking about, Bones!? I'm not _yelling_ at everyone!" His eyebrows knitted together incredulously, not seeing that the intern, who was by then standing behind him, turn and slink away, sensing it was a good time to escape the 'Wrath of Grumpy Booth'.

She raised her palm to his face and rubbed her thumb across his chiseled cheekbone. "You're tired, Booth. You've had a _terrible_, long week and the early phone call disturbed our sleep. You get irritable when you're over-tired. Why don't you go home after you drop me at the lab, take a hot shower, get dry clothes on and get some sleep. When you wake up I'll have something for you, regarding the investigation." Brennan hoped that Booth would take her advice, but knew, deep down, that he would decline.

"Bones," he stepped forward a bit, crowding into her personal space beneath the umbrella, he lowered his voice. "I'm not going to drop you off to work and then go home. I have a change of clothes at the lab. I'll stay; maybe I'll just hang out in your office for a bit." He leaned in, and against their 'no-physical-contact-at-work-agreement', he gave her a gentle kiss, lingering against her supple lips for several minutes. "C'mon, Bones. Let's get over to the lab." Placing his hand at the small of her back, they navigated their way through mud puddles and over slippery piles of fallen leaves, sliding into the SUV moments later.

B/B/B/B

As Brennan pulled the duffle containing their emergency clothes from the closet in her office, she felt a shiver run down her spine. Despite the fact that Booth had tried his best to shelter her from the rain, she had gotten soaked clear through; every stitch of clothing she wore was wet and sticking to her body. When the air conditioning in the lab hit her skin, she couldn't help but shutter against the chill. She smiled as Booth bent forward and took the bag from her hands, relinquishing ownership of it to him easily.

"C'mon, baby. Let's take a shower," he smiled and headed towards the bathroom.

"Booth, you can shower; I'm just going to change, so I can get back to work." She trailed behind him, walking into her office ensuite bathroom and closed the door behind them. When she turned, she found herself pinned between the now-closed door and the steely body of her partner. "Booth-"

"You _will_ take a shower, Bones. You need to warm up just as much as I do. The work can wait for 20 minutes." He leaned against her, bracing his arms against the door at her back and brushed his lips against the outer shell of her ear. "Besides," he breathed, "we have some unfinished business that we didn't get to complete this morning, Bones." His voice was raw, obviously full of need and want. "And I don't like to leave things unfinished…especially the _important_ things…

Brennan drew a quick breath and found her senses filled with his scent. She shuddered at the sheer desire she felt for this man, and although they had discussed_, and agreed_, that they would keep their sexual encounters _**out**_ of the work place, she knowingly felt the same yearning for him as he felt for her. She brought her hands to his chest and fumbled with the buttons on his cold and wet oxford shirt, tilting her head as his mouth assaulted her neck when she didn't balk as his advances.

As she pushed the shirt from his perfectly proportioned muscular shoulders, she let her fingertips dance across his skin. A small kittenish moan escaped her throat when he settled his tongue at the special spot just behind her earlobe. She squirmed in her sticky wet suit, wanting to shed her own clothing so she could press her body against his.

Sensing her desire, Booth moved his hands to the front zipper of her standard blue Jeffersonian jumpsuit and gave a quick tug, pulling the suit open down to her waist. He growled in appreciation at the fact that she was wearing a front clasp bra, allowing him to get to her heaving breasts quickly and efficiently. Brennan let her partner strip her down to the skin, relishing in the feel of his tongue as it followed his hands as they moved across her body. Once she was naked before his eyes, he pressed back against her, thrusting his still-clothed hips against hers. "Bones…you're so beautiful, baby…" He slanted his lips over hers and invaded her mouth in seconds, pulling the air from her lungs in the process. When he pulled back, they were both panting as their hands groped one another.

"Booth, we need to get your pants off… you're overdressed…" She spoke against his mouth, nipping his lips between words. Without waiting for him to make the move, her hands darted out to his waistband and found his cocky belt buckle, undoing it with practiced precision while he splayed his wide hands around her hips, digging into the soft flesh he found there.

Once Brennan started to push his pants down and over his narrow hips, he assisted hastily, dropping them to pool around his ankles where he stood. Barely breaking their kiss, he shuffled his feet from the tangles of his slacks, using his toes to push down and remove his stripy socks in the process. "Bones…Baby…. Last night was wonderful… you were amazing…" He peppered her jawline with tiny kisses and nips. "But right now… I need you… I… feel like…I'm going to burst, baby…"

Agreeing that this moment was not one for slow passionate love-making, but instead one for hot, quick, needy sex, Brennan raised one long, slender leg and wrapped it around his hip, pulling him so close that his prominent erection pressed hard against her tummy. "Yes…" she moaned as he pressed his hips against hers, increasing the pressure of his throbbing cock against her body. Brennan felt her own excitement pooling low in her core, ready to release at the first intimate touch he laid against her warm lips. "How do you want me, Booth? Tell me…" She dropped her head against the door against which she leaned and rotated her hips against her lover.

His answer was a simple movement as he hiked her other leg up, letting it mirror the first wrapped around his waist. Without any sort of foreplay or fondling, Booth lined himself up and rocked forward, burying his dick deep inside her tight sheath with a forceful thrust. Groaning at her readiness, he stilled momentarily, pressing deep inside her body, losing himself in her warmth. He felt like he could pass out from the amazing pressure he felt as her body squeezed his member tight. Then, he started to move, pulling out almost completely before pressing back into her, letting the sturdiness of the closed door brace her body for the impending assault he was about to instill. Growling in a primal, animalistic fashion, Booth stilled once more and pinned her with darkened brown eyes, almost ebony in color. Brennan felt her body ripple with anticipation.

A slight nod of her head was all he needed to know that she was ready. He braced one hand at the small of her back to protect her from being hurt and squeezed her ass with his other palm; a silent warning of what was yet to come. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him closer as he began to move once again.

This time, his rhythm was not steady, his finesse was lost. He pounded into her with vigor bringing them both to the brink of orgasm in mere moments. "C'mon, Bones…Cum for me, baby…I wanna feel you… I _need_ to feel you…" Booth pressed his lips to her ear, "_Temperance_, cum for me…"

As she listened to his silky voice, dripping with masculinity and sex, she felt the familiar pressure building low in her tummy. Her inner muscles were purposefully milking his dick; her primordial bodily needs took over as he spread her in the most ancient carnal dance known to mankind. The feeling of his thick girth moving inside was delicious and she soon fell into a tailspin certain to pull from him, his own climax.

She clutched to his body and cried out his name as he bottomed-out into her warmth. Feeling his heavy balls slapping against her wet lips, combined with her muscle spasms as she shattered around him was all it took to pull him over the edge with her. He thrust once, twice and by the third time he pressed in and emptied himself deep inside with a rasping grunt as he moaned her name.

After several moments, the pair managed to catch their breath and Brennan gingerly lowered her legs from around his _very comfortable_ hips and stood on shaky limbs with his help. "I think we should take our shower now, Booth," she grinned against his neck and kissed his stubbly skin, inwardly happy he didn't take the time to shave before they left this morning.

"Hmmm…" he couldn't quite talk yet, but he kissed her temple before she pulled away, and then nodded in agreement. "Mmmm-hmmm."

She smiled at his mumbles as she moved to the shower stall to clean up before heading out to work. As he sidled up behind her, she hummed in approval, letting him wash her back before taking her turn washing his.

B/B/B/B

Booth stood in the doorway of Brennan's office, leaning against the doorframe, and watched her while she worked on the platform. Letting his head rest against the doorjamb, he sighed as he admired the way her body moved gracefully as she circled the shiny stainless steel table holding their newest victim. He could hear her ordering Mr. Fisher to perform various tasks and tests, and at some point she must have felt his eyes upon her. She raised her head from where she was hunched over the body and met his stare. They shared a 'moment' from across the distance, exchanging smiles as her cheeks blossomed in rosy blotches. He blew her a kiss as he pushed off his resting spot, backing into her office towards the couch. He hated to lie down while she was working, but he knew there was nothing he could do out there, except get in her way, so he took the opportunity to stretch out his back on her nice warm couch until she needed him.

When he sat down, he toed off his shoes, happy he opted for his sweatpants and a t-shirt rather than another suit. Something on the coffee table caught his eye just as he started to lie down. Reaching for the envelope, he realized immediately what it was. _Bones left me a letter_, he smiled as he wondered if she had been carrying it around with her since that night a couple weeks back when he read the first one. Initially he had wanted to read one letter every few days, or maybe once a week. But the hellish case they worked last week cut into their quiet time and they hadn't yet explored the next letter in the series of un-mailed correspondence. Settling down onto the couch, Booth adjusted the throw pillows beneath his head so he was comfortable, grabbed the blanket from the back to cover his legs and opened the elegantly addressed envelope she left for him.

_Day 2_

_Dear Booth, _

_I have been at camp in Maluku for a full day, now. It took us nearly 24-hours to reach our destination. We encountered several problems enroute… Cancelled flights due to bad weather led to missing connecting flights, which, in turn, led to a confused Ground Transportation Team, as they were unsure of our expected arrival time. Apparently, despite the fact that the airlines were supposed to communicate all of the changes and delays, communication in Maluku is somewhat - - primitive… Three of us - myself, Ms. Wick and another colleague whom we've just met, named Dr. Linda Graystone, (she is a paleoanthropologist. That's a scientist who studies prehistoric humans – our immediate ancestors) - were forced to remain in the tiny airport in Maluku for an extended period of time until we could arrange our own transportation to camp. I will be filing for all expenses to be reimbursed, as I was forced to pay for the substitute travel arrangements out of my own money. And while I know I can afford it, it's the principle of the matter…The airlines assured us they were making the proper adjustments on our behalf. _

_Needless to say, I was not, as you might say, 'a happy camper.'_

_The base camp is much less organized than I would like, and I have expressed my opinion on the matter to those in charge of the supposed smooth-running of this temporary establishment. They did not seem inclined to hear my thoughts, much to my surprise. I am a brilliant individual, Booth, and offer excellent suggestions. However, given their lack of enthusiasm and apparent disregard for a person of higher intelligence, I feel that I will have to take my requests to a higher power. No, not to your mythological 'Higher Power God'… I refer to the individuals funding this project. I have decided to give the local organizers 48 hours to improve the conditions in camp, and if they make no attempts in doing so, I will seek satisfaction elsewhere. If I am expected to perform to the peak of my expert abilities, I expect, in return, to have acceptable working conditions. _

_Ms. Wick, to put it mildly, has been driving me crazy since we left DC. (Metaphorically speaking, of course, because I am quite sane, I assure you.) I believe Sweets would simply explain to me that I am lacking the patience required to deal with the energy she exudes on a minute by minute basis. Nevertheless, I am very happy to be bunking alone. A benefit to being one of the senior advisors on this project is that I have private quarters. Well, it's a private tent, actually. It is small, but sufficient for what I require. I have a single cot bunk, a small foot locker and a seat. I have commandeered two milk crates that were empty in the mess tent (yes, like the military, we refer to our dining tent as the mess tent), and I stacked the two crates beside my cot in lieu of a table. Upon my 'nightstand' I have a small lantern, the group photo that the team had taken at Founding Fathers last week and the photo of you, Parker and myself after his last soccer game. Game? Match? Meet? Well, whatever the correct term, I trust you get the picture. (Get it? You 'get the picture' about the picture?) Yes, I am laughing at my own joke. Are you? I am a very entertaining person, you know. I am very funny. _

_We still have not been advised on the post-situation here at camp, so I still don't know when I will send this or the previously written letter. But as soon as I find the details, I will make arrangements to send them. _

_I hope that you are doing well, Booth. Have you arrived in Afghanistan yet? You would have left yesterday, if all the plans remained as they were before we parted. I hope that wherever you are, you are safe and healthy. _

_I had a dream about us, Booth. You and I were riding in the SUV, debating something. But I don't remember the details; I just know that we were bantering back and forth. I felt good when I woke up, Booth. I felt almost as if I was waking at home and would be seeing you within the hour after waking. Then I realized that I was not at home, but in my tent, and I immediately found that I miss you. _

_I fear this is going to be a long year, Booth. And it's only been a couple of days. _

_I know, however, once we get busy with our discoveries here in Maluku, my mind will be occupied and I will be too busy to miss home. But I will continue to miss you. I don't know how you've done it, but somehow, you've integrated yourself into my life, Booth, and now I am not sure I can picture my existence without you. _

_Be safe. _

_Always, _

_Bones_

_PS: Yes, so, I have decided to close my letters with 'Always', is this acceptable? _

Booth read the letter twice before placing it carefully back into the envelope. He let his mind wander to what her living quarters were like and what she must have looked like while she was writing to him… Did she sit in her tent or outside while penning these words… Would she smile at her visions of them together or did she look pensive as she got lost in her thoughts… Did she cry for him the way he'd shed tears for her in those early days of separation...?

But the one thing that his mind centered on as he drifted off to sleep was, _She missed me; she loved me even then…she just didn't know it…_

A few hours later, he stirred to a familiar warmth as he lay on his side. Cracking his eye open slowly, he smiled as his partner snuggled into his chest in her slumber. Booth didn't know when Brennan had joined him on the couch for a nap, but smiled that she did. He wrapped a protective arm around her body, guarding that she didn't roll backwards and fall from the sofa, and held her tight to his torso. Placing a kiss atop her head, he whispered words of love that she, even in her sleep, responded to by gripping his t-shirt and mumbling against his chest.

And, if even for just a little while, the partners dozed off wrapped around each other, trying to regain a few of their lost moments from the previous week. The current case would have to wait for just a little longer.

**Postscript A/N**

**So…. What do you think of Brennan's second letter? Do you think that once she gets busy with her work that she will, as she predicts, miss home a little less? I'd love to hear what you think. PLEASE leave me a message or review below! THANK YOU **


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N Welcome back! I appreciate all the comments and PMs I am receiving for 'Letters from Maluku.' It makes me feel as though my writing is worthwhile to know that there are people out there who are enjoying it. I am, as always, humbled. **

**This chapter is a little different…. OK, really different for me... And WAAAAY outside of my comfort zone. But taking cues and inspiration from other writers who write in the first person, I wanted to try my hand at it… I'm not certain I pulled it off, and I might **_**never-**__**ever**_** do it again, but I didn't have it in me to go back and re-write the whole chapter around the letter once it was complete, so you're getting what the Muse has produced… as raw as it is, I hope it's not completely disasterous and that you're not terribly disappointed. **

**Disclaimer: What's the law on this, do I have to put a disclaimer at the start of every chapter? Because nothing has changed… I don't own anything except for the idea of Brennan writing unposted letters to Booth while they were apart… That said, I think I will give HH a call and ask him why I'm not on the payroll yet… LOL**

As I stood in the bathroom, looking at my body in the full length mirror, I noticed something different.

I've changed…

Not physically - I am still slim and fit. I haven't gained or lost any weight of which to speak. My hips are no wider, my breasts are still full, my abdomen still tight… My hair is the same as it always is (after I finish dying it, of course… Once the random grays are covered, no one is the wiser.) My eyes are still blue and clear, my jaw is still sharp, and, as I am doing at the moment, my eyebrow still arches high in examination and curiosity.

I look the same, and yet something is different.

I look…happy. I _am_ happy.

Not to say that I wasn't happy previously. I was content with my life. I had my work at the lab as well as my partnership with Booth. I had my small circle of friends, who I dare call nearly family. And all of that is still true... I still have my work, my partnership and my friends.

But I am no longer simply _content_… I am truly _happy_.

My normally pale cheeks have a rosy glow, yet I am wearing no make-up. My lips are curled at the corners in a seemingly permanent smile. And my eyes seem to…_sparkle_ back at me as they travel over the reflection I face.

I can only contribute whatever miniscule changes my being is undergoing to the man in my life – the man to whom I have given myself in a way that I never thought I would do for anyone.

Booth makes me happy. More than happy…Booth makes me- - -_complete_.

Special Agent Seeley Booth has left his marks on me over the years that we've worked together, but none moreso than the months since we've been officially 'together'. His marks are both visible _and_ invisible.

The visible marks are, obviously, easy to spot and they make me smile when I reminisce precisely how he delivered those marks… His lips, those sensual lips, are strong when they latch onto my creamy skin and he suckles at the pulse point at the hollow of my throat… And his perfect teeth leave tiny trails of evidence when he drags them along my clavicle. When he palms my hips while I ride him from above, his fingers dig into my flesh, and I am left with tiny bruises – wonderful reminders of what we share every chance we get. And when I am stretched out below his body, and he hooks my legs over his shoulders while he presses into me over and over _and over_, sometimes he leaves tiny bruises then, too… on the backs of my thighs, just above my knees, where his hands wrap around my welcomingly open legs. When he is taking me from behind, whether it's there on the bed or in the shower or over the back of the couch, I am left with delicious reminders on my shoulders, where his hands grip me to hold me still, and _sometimes_ where he bites me playfully before easing the sting with his warm, wet tongue.

And while those marks are wonderful – beautiful, even - they aren't the marks on which I'm focused. No, I am thinking about those that no one else can see…but I can definitely _feel_.

For lack of a better description, I have experienced intimately emotional changes & personality marks since Booth has been in my life… Changes in the way I view my surroundings, evolved opinions of what should and shouldn't take precedence in daily life, and on occasion, a renewed sense of self-esteem. For all my intelligence and success, I often find myself confused and uncomfortable when surrounded by others, especially strangers. Eight years ago, Booth, with an unusual combination of patience and frustration, the like of which I've never seen in anyone else, started guiding me – _educating_ me in sorts – of what is acceptable to say or do and what is generally deemed as improper or offensive. Societal rules don't always make sense to me, but I trust his advice and follow his lead when in public. And so far, he's never steered me wrong.

Angela says I am becoming more romantic, too, and I can only attribute that to my relationship with Booth. I have to admit, I _enjoy_ the attention that he lavishes on me ever since finally crossing that 'line'. I can't help by smile when I find a flower or trinket or little toy on my desk when I come up from Limbo, knowing that he stopped to leave me the little surprise and ducked out quietly, never disturbing my work. He causes me to blush in the middle of the day when he texts me sweet messages of love, or promises of what he plans to do to me that night when we finally arrive home... I feel overwhelming, and physiologically inexplicable sensations of warmth when he flashes that ridiculous 'charm' smile at me. That 'charm smile,' by the way, used to drive me metaphorically insane… I used to think he was so arrogant, using it to get whatever he wanted _from whomever_ _possessed what he wanted_; but now, I long to see it every day. _And _I have noticed that he doesn't use it anymore, unless he's using it on me… And, begrudgingly, I have to say that I don't mind anymore. Secretly, I love that smile more and more every day, and it brightens even the dreariest of days when his whole face is 'taken-over' by that 100-watt grin.

But, he _definitely_ knows when to use it…and I am grateful that he only flashes it in my direction these days. I don't particularly want other people, _especially women_, being on the receiving end of Booth's charm. That smile is _'mine_,' and I have informed him of my opinion on the matter.

That's another hidden mark he's imposed upon my personality… My sudden, _and seemingly acceptable_, sensation of _possession_ when it comes to Booth… I cannot help but allow my smile to grow when I think about the night I told him that I didn't like when other women ogled him… He was turned on by my possessiveness… He said, and I quote, "Possessive-Bones is fucking hot." (I can always tell when he is experiencing advanced sexual arousal, because he 'drops the f-bomb', (_as Hodgins refers to the word 'fuck'_), often as he sidles up against me, nuzzling into my neck.) So, I am led to believe that he doesn't mind that I feel territorial when we're faced with the wondering eyes of other women… Women notice Booth wherever we go…he is a perfect specimen of the human male, and most females recognize that fact. And when they watch him, when they _admire_ his expansive chest when it's poured into one of his tight fitting FBI t-shirts, or his amazing ass when he's wearing his straight-cut jeans, or his handsomely chiseled face with a day's worth of stubble growing or his deep chocolate eyes - _those amazing eyes_ -, inevitably I find myself intertwining our fingers or wrapping my arm around his waist…I make sure to demonstrate to those potential challengers, that I am the alpha female in the room and he is my alpha male. Oddly enough, he seems to relish in those public displays of possession, despite his outward prudishness about sex. He often pulls me in close at those times and kisses me deeply, cementing the truth to those onlookers the fact that we are together. I would never have approved of such an exhibition of- _ownership_ with any other man. In fact, I never even sensed jealousy when I was with other men… I didn't care if a passing woman looked at my date; after all, it is only human nature to seek the best possible match in order to procreate, so I understood those women were simply 'sizing up' their options. But now…whew… I can finally understand the concept of 'blind jealousy'.

Those are just a couple of the non-physical changes that have happened since Booth and I started sharing a bed. And as I start to let my mind wander on its own to other changes that have taken over my previously-impervious emotions, I see the partially closed bathroom door slowly swing open, revealing the beautifully naked form of my fiancée leaning against the door frame, pulling a long swallow from his bottle of beer. Yes, Booth is a _beautiful _man, even if he doesn't like it when I say that... It's the truth, and I only speak in truths.

Our eyes meet in the mirrored reflection, but I do not turn around. He pushes off the wood trim and walks up behind me, and after reaching forward to place his bottle on the vanity, he wraps his strong arms around my waist as he presses his prominent erection into the small of my back. Immediately, I smile and let my head fall back to his shoulder as he places slow, wet kisses along my neck and settles at my earlobe.

"Whatcha doin', Bones?" His voice was low and sexy, still husky from the love we've just shared. "You've been in here for a while. You alright?" He rubs his stubbly cheek against my temple, causing my eyelids to close without permission as he watches my reaction through the mirror.

"Mmmm…" It's all I can manage when my senses are assaulted with Booth's hands… and lips… and tongue… and smell… Yes his _smell_… Booth's unique pheromones combined with the remnants of the cologne he used this morning, combined further with the arousing scent of our shared love invades my nostrils and renders me momentarily speechless. Somewhere in the back of my brain, I am amazed that he is already hard…I can feel the pressure of his long, thick erection as he leans against me, rotating his hips ever so slightly.

When I don't respond, he stills his actions and simply holds me close. "Are you upset about something, Bones?" His eyes show the battle between his concern for me and his raw desire for me, and I immediately know I have to set his mind at ease.

"No, Booth. I'm not upset about anything." I speak softly and move my arms down to my sides and reach back to his legs, gripping his strong, solid thighs, and pull him tighter against my back. "I was just thinking… I'm sorry I was in here so long, I guess I lost track of time."

"Mm-hmm…" His eyes drill into my reflected blue orbs. "What has you thinking so hard, baby?" His hands splay across my torso, stretching so that his pinky of his left hand brushes my barely-there pubic fuzz, and his right thumb is settled in the valley of my cleavage…His fingers cover my skin, leaving it tingling deliciously as he flexes his wide grip.

"I want to give you another letter, Booth." I answer quickly with a smile, knowing that he enjoys reading the letters I failed to post while we were parted. I want to make him happy…I want to make him as happy as he makes me, and when I see that handsome smile spread across his strong lips, I know I gave him the right answer. "C'mon," I turn around in his arms and stretch up to kiss him tenderly before taking his hand in mine and leading him back into his bedroom. _Our_ bedroom, though I have not officially moved in here nor has he officially moved into my place. I guess one would say we have two '_our_-bedrooms'… Regardless, I lead him back in there, and ask him to sit on the chair before I walk over to my messenger bag to retrieve the next sealed envelope that never found its way to greet him in Afghanistan.

As I near him once again, he reaches out and pulls me into his lap while I grab the throw blanket from the back rest and wrap it around our bodies, capturing our combined heat in the cooling late night air of the apartment.

_Hi Booth, _

_It's day five now. _

_The camp is much more organized than I previously mentioned in my last letter. I still have the letters, because there is no current arrangement for post-pick-up. It is something they are working out, but I decided to continue to write to you, even though I haven't yet mailed anything. This way, I will not have to try to remember everything that happens and condense it all into one letter. I hope that you don't mind receiving several notes? _

_One of the dig teams has finally completed the grid perimeter in which we will begin digging tomorrow. It will be slow-moving, tedious work, but I find that I am very much looking forward to getting my hands dirty once again. It has been a while since I worked on a dig, and I have an inexplicable giddiness at the possibility of finding evidence of early hominids. I won't get too technical, because I can just picture you rolling your eyes, Booth, but if what we expect to find does in fact surface, it will change the face of history. It will change the way our children are taught. I am excited at the prospect of impacting the futures of children; wonderful students like Parker, who will learn a different history than you and I did in school. _

_The temperature is not terribly warm, but is extremely humid. It is approximately 86 degrees (though they do not use Fahrenheit here on the islands, but I converted it for you. If you asked a local what the temperature was, he would tell you is it 30). We are currently in the wet season, so I suspect that I will have difficulty keeping my clothes and shoes dry in the coming months. That does not hinder my eagerness, however… _

_But I find myself wishing you were here to share some of these experiences with me. I know you do not share the same enthusiasm as I in the anthropological sense of my exploration, but I think you would like the islands. I plan to start cataloguing some of my daily experiences with my camera, so I will be able to show you what we do here. _

_Last night I had a dream about Angela. There was no plot that I can recall, but she was laughing. You know that big, wide, toothy smile she gets when she's really happy? That's how she looked. I think I am going to miss her terribly as well. More than I expected. _

_And, as seems to be the new 'norm' for my nights, I had another dream of you. Nothing of importance, just you sitting across from me at the diner… I was stealing your fries… I woke with a smile, but I have to admit that I feel a dull, throbbing twinge in my chest that I can only describe as heart-ache. I have never experienced the sensation of missing someone so much, and I know that the heart is only a muscle with no pain sensors, so it is virtually impossible for it to ache, but nevertheless, I have heard the term enough to be able to relate it to what I feel. Does that make sense, Booth? Does your heart ever ache?_

_Maybe it's simply Acid Reflux… perhaps I will administer to myself, some famotidine this evening before retire… Sorry, I mean that I will take a couple of TUMS tonight before bed… _

_Anyway, Booth, I am going to wrap up this letter and add it to the collection. We are expecting a courier to come with deliveries late next week, and hopefully he will collect the mail as well. By the time he (or she) arrives, I plan to have several more letters written, outlining my days. I hope I do not bore you, but I find that this is the best way for me to feel as though I've not lost touch with you…If I continue to talk to you, even in my mind as I write this, I can imagine your answers, your quizzical stares , even your eye-rolls. Sweets would probably want to analyze my mind if he knew I was 'talking' to you when you aren't here… I will have to be sure to refrain from telling him this bit of information. _

_What are you doing in Afghanistan? I know you probably cannot tell me specifics, but I wonder what kind of training with which you've been charged… I hope that you are not in direct harm's way. Be safe. _

_I miss you, Booth. And it's not even been a week. And I miss Angela. _

_Always, _

_Bones _

Placing a kiss against my forehead, as I rest against his shoulder, Booth holds me close and whispers. "You're beautiful, Bones. Thank you for my letter, babe." His fingers tangle in my messy bed-hair, "I love each one a little more than the last… I'm so glad you wrote them." His smile is warm and I feel it radiate into my metaphorical soul. "And to answer your question – yes, I have experienced heart-ache… Every time we're apart, Bones."

I wrap my arms around his shoulders and turn my body partially towards his, though I still sit on his lap sideways. "I love you, Booth." It's a simple statement, but so very true… and now that I have the option of telling him whenever I want, I do it often. I don't say it a lot when we're out in public or at work, but at home, I always make sure he knows that I love him. I never again want him to question my feelings about him. "Let's go back to bed, Booth. It's late."

I start to rise, but he grips my legs and waist, instead, standing up while holding me. He carries me over to the bed, where he gently lays me down and crawls in beside me. Mere seconds pass before his strong body is partially covering my much smaller frame.

"I love you, too, Bones." He kisses me deeply and I feel the familiar stirrings of my own arousal awaken in my abdomen, followed quickly by moist warmth gathering at the juncture where my thighs join the rest of my body.

I bring my hands to his face and cradle his stubbly cheeks as he pulls back briefly, and our eyes lock. "Booth, you make me happy. Happier than I ever thought was possible… That's what I was thinking about in the bathroom while I was looking in the mirror. I am _so_ happy; the word doesn't even seem to encompass my feelings…" I feel unexpected tears sting the backs of my eyes. But I don't want to cry because I don't want him to think I'm sad in any way…

He sees _and knows_ my emotions; I know he does. But he simply smiles and catches the defiant tear that escapes the corner of my left eye. "I'm glad, Bones. I want to make you happy. Don't ever doubt that for even a second… My goal is to always make sure you're protected, and comfortable, and happy…" He kisses my cheeks, then my nose, then my forehead before moving to my lips.

I whisper into his mouth as he begins to kiss me, "Make love to me, Booth. Let's break the laws of physics and become one…"

I don't have to ask twice; he is immediately upon me; his hands and mouth everywhere at once as he drives me into wave after wave of sexual ecstasy, declaring _and demonstrating _his love for me over and over.

Yes, Seeley Booth has made his marks on me over the years. And I don't want him to stop doing the same in our upcoming years… maybe even the next 30, 40 or 50 years…

**A/N Postcript**

**So, there you have it…my first actual stab at writing some first-person internal dialog for Brennan. I thought about tackling Booth as my first attempt at this adventure, but then I thought better of it and aimed at Brennan instead; I think she's a little more approachable in this context. I hope you weren't disappointed too much. **

**Please leave your thoughts and let me know. **

**Reviews are so valuable for writers. It not only lets us know that the story is being viewed, but also gives us some direction as to where you, as the reader, would like to see the story line end-up. Please take a moment and let me know… **

***Cheesy smile with raised eyebrows over puppy-dog eyes…* **

**Peace & love my friends, **

**~jazzy**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N Hello! Welcome back! Thanks for still taking an interest in 'Letters from Maluku', I really appreciate the support! **

**In response to many PMs that I haven't had the chance to reply to yet – YES, I am still working on the sequel to CYSHAB! I don't want to post any chapters until I get the first handful well underway, and the groundwork done for the direction of the tale…So, that is why I'm giving you these little tidbits and one shots…to keep you entertained in the interim. **

**Someone asked me if I accepted prompts, since I posted 'I Never Realized' last week. I generally don't, because my mind is always racing with its own prompts. That said, I took that one and ran with it because it spoke to me. If you have something in mind that you think I'd like, or a prompt to which you think my writing style would lend itself well, let me know and I will add it to my possibilities, but I don't want to make any promises, because I don't know when/if I will ever get to it… But I will certainly take any suggestions under advisement. **

**Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own Bones. Fox & HH & all the other people involved with the show own it… But I, unfortunately, haven't been invited to join that club, so I sit and type up little ditties for you fine folks. Thank you for enjoying them!**

Brennan entered her office after spending most of her day in Limbo identifying ancient remains, only to find her partner sitting on her couch, hunched over his laptop as it rested on her coffee table, perfecting his hunt-n-peck two-finger-typing method. Raising her eyebrow at his presence, she approached quietly. She noted the scattering of files surrounding him, on the floor and filling the cushions of the sofa in what she had long ago termed as Boothy-organization. It was a filing system that he, _and he alone_, understood when they worked on a case. She had often times tried to give him advice on using accordion files or binders to better sort his notes while he transcribed things into the computer systems, but time and again, he would refuse, insisting that his method was perfectly fine. 'Organized Chaos' is what he called it as he defended his own techniques of order, all the while grinning at her and sending winks in her direction. She always smiled, knowing that his haphazard ways helped define who he was, and after 8 years of working at his side, and now sharing his personal life as well, she wouldn't have him any other way. He was good at his job, the top in his field, just as she was, and if this method worked for him, why should she try to change it?

"Booth?" She asked quietly as she approached from just behind the couch, "What are you doing here?"

"Hey, babe," he stopped what he was working on immediately and stood to greet her with a quick kiss on the lips as he wrapped his arms around her waist. "They're doing some remodeling in the bullpen and I just couldn't stand all the noise and dust over there anymore. Even when I closed my door, it didn't help. So, I told Cullen if he needed me, he'd have to call me because I was making my office 'mobile' today." He smiled as he leaned in for another kiss, this one a little softer and a little more lingering as she wrapped her fingers around the nape of his neck and held him near.

"Mmm…" She hummed against his lips before he pulled back again, and then met his smile with one of her own. "It's nice to see you, Booth. I didn't think I'd see you until tonight; I knew you would be backed up with your paperwork today." She ran her fingers against the collar of his shirt and settled them at the knot of his tie, unnecessarily straightening the already-perfectly-shaped triangle. "What time did you get here?" She glanced at her watch and saw that it was nearly 1:30.

"Ahh… about 9:45 or so, I guess." He shrugged as he tried to remember what time he actually arrived at the lab after giving up over in the Hoover.

"Why didn't you come down at get me, Booth? Have you eaten?" She was shocked that he had been there for nearly 4 hours and didn't come looking for her.

"I didn't want to bother you." He shrugged slightly, "Finn said you were in Limbo and I knew that the back-to-back cases we just wrapped up interfered with the ancient remains waiting to be identified. So, I just brought what I needed and made myself comfortable in here. I didn't realize what time it was… wow, time flies when you're having fun." He smiled as he unwrapped his arms from around her body, remembering that they were at work. Despite the occasional slip-up, they _tried_ to keep their intimacy _out_ of the work place. He did drop his hand to hers and tugged her with him towards the couch, pushing an errant pile out of the way to make room for her to sit.

Once she was settled next to him, she couldn't help but reach for a messy stack of papers on the coffee table and attempt to straighten them. He grinned at her innate need for orderliness and he reached for her hand, gently pulling it back and pushing her back against the back of the sofa. "Did you eat lunch, Bones?" He met her eyes, knowing the answer already, but wanted her to answer his question.

Feeling the blush spread across her cheeks, she dropped her eyes to the computer on the table and focused on nothing particular. "No." She answered quietly, knowing that just that morning, she had promised Booth that she wouldn't let herself skip lunch, just because he wasn't going to be able to come to the lab and drag her to the diner for sustenance.

When she raised her eyes to meet his, she saw the amused smirk he wore as he shook his head slowly. "And I don't suppose you took a break this morning and had some giant breakfast to make up for the fact that you weren't going to stop for lunch…?"

She slowly shook her head guiltily, reminding him of a child. "No. I didn't…" She cocked her head a little and looked at him, "but I'm not hungry, Booth. When I get busy with my work, I don't feel hunger, I don't think about stopping. You know that…"

"Yeah, I do. That's why I was only giving you until 2:00 before coming to look for you, so we could go eat." He smiled, wide and toothy, as he saved the document on which he'd been working. "Get your jacket baby, let's take a break." He glanced at her from the corner of his eye as she pouted slightly.

"Booth. I am a grown woman. I don't need to be coddled, nor do I need you to tell me when I'm hungry and when I'm not…" As if in direct response to, _and retaliation against_, her argument, her stomach growled loudly, drawing a chesty chuckle from her mate.

"Yeah, I know, Bones. I know…" He shut his laptop and placed a couple of paperweights upon his various stacks as he moved to stand from his seat. "And I'll bet you just came up from Limbo to break for lunch now, didn't you? You were gunna head to the diner anyway, right? That's why you have that stack of files you just carried in here…" He smiled, knowing that she would have continued to work, disregarding the angry grumbles erupting from her gut for the remainder of the afternoon.

"Maybe…" she raised her chin defiantly as she once again felt the crimson spread from cheek to cheek, crossing the bridge of her nose. "_Maybe_ I was going to go meet someone for lunch. Ever think of that?" She stifled a smile as she toyed with him. "Maybe I had a _date_, since you were supposed to be otherwise occupied today…"

"Ahh… A date, hmmm?" He laughed as he pulled her up to her feet, physically turning her around so he could remove her lab coat. Once he lowered her blue Jeffersonian uniform jacket from her shoulders, he pressed in against her back, holding her arms straight down to her sides. "And, uh, who might this date have been with?" He pressed a soft kiss to the side of her neck. "Hmm?"

"My other boyfriend… the _cute_ one…" she smiled and tilted her head so he could access more of her neck, disregarding their rule, which progressively got broken more and more often, the longer they dated. "Hmm…" She let her eyes close as he released her wrists and moved his hands to her hips, pulling her gently back against his chest, the curve of her soft ass pressing against his responsive crotch.

"Oh, that _cute_ one, huh?" He smiled against her skin as she nodded absently. He loved that he was permitted to see, and be on the receiving end of Brennan's playful side; something not many people were privileged enough to see, and for that, he was thankful. Many people still saw her as a cold, uncaring individual…But those who knew her, knew that she was one of the warmest people in the world.

"Mmm hmm…" she smiled through her sing-song tone. "Not only is he cute, but he _entertains_ me as well…Physically _and_ mentally… He's quite a '_catch'_, I believe is the terminology that Angela would use…" She stifled a grin as she leant into his kiss and wiggled her ass playfully against his body.

"Yeah…" Booth huffed, "sounds like a pussy to me…" He wrapped his hands completely around her, resting his hands flat against her stomach. "You deserve more than '_cute and entertaining_,' baby…" His mouth moved and he started nibbling on the other side of her porcelain-like neck. "You deserve more…"

"Oh yeah? And precisely what would you suggest, Agent Booth? Or perhaps the better question is _who_ would you suggest?" She purred as she felt his fingertips worm their ways in between the buttons of her blouse, stroking the smooth skin of her abdomen.

"You deserve someone who will _shatter your world_, Bones…" His warm mouth moved up to her ear as his careful eyes darted around, watching for anyone who might approach her office and interrupt their moment. His heated breath caused shivers to rake the length of Brennan's body and she fought to control her own breathing.

With a cocky smile against her temple, his baritone words rumbled, speaking directly to her very core. "Let me take you back to my place for lunch…and I'll give you a little _demonstration_ of someone worthy of your affections, Dr. Brennan…Someone with more than 'cute and entertaining' to offer to you…" He growled in desire as he observed from over her shoulder, that when she arched her back slightly, pressing her bottom further into his hardening erection, her inviting breasts pushed out against her thin green blouse, the flimsy bra beneath barely restraining her budding nipples.

Turning in his arms, she splayed her hands across his crisply pressed pale blue dress shirt. Inhaling sharply, her senses were assaulted by his clean scent – her favorite cologne that he splashed on that morning following his shower, the still-fresh remnants of menthol and eucalyptus left behind by his C. O. Bigelow shaving cream, the inviting minty-ness of the melt-away mint he'd eaten, an effort to stave off his hunger, while working. She raised her darkened blue eyes to his molten chocolates as he watched her, and she stretched up to capture his lips, wrapping her arms around his muscular shoulders completely.

"Take me home, Booth… Take me home and take me to bed…" She spoke into his mouth as she nipped his lower lip and drug her fingertips through the short hairs at his neck.

He wasted no time in contemplating her request; why tempt fate when it came to the possibility of them being interrupted? He moved quickly, grabbing her hand and tugging her towards the door.

"Wait, Booth! I have to get my bag…and my jacket…" Brennan reached for the coat rack as he pulled her past it, laughing teasingly at his eagerness. Swiping her trench and messenger bag, Brennan let herself be tugged along slightly behind the strong build of her partner as she smiled at the thick tension she could see in his neck.

"Oh, Dr. Brennan? Booth?" Cam called to them from across the lab, "can I have a quick word?" She trotted after the retreating pair and continued to call to them. "Booth…? Dr. Brennan…?" She slowed to a stop when she saw Booth raise his hand and waive over his shoulder without even pausing to hear what she had to say. _I know that look_, she thought with a smirk, _Dr. Brennan's in for a nice afternoon_… She turned back towards her office and walked casually through her door and continued the autopsy on which she'd been working before trying to catch the partners.

B/B/B/B

Arriving at his apartment building, Booth crowded Brennan into the elevator, pinning her body between his and the back wall. He dipped his head and started sucking on her neck as she tilted her head aside for easier access. Placing open-mouthed kisses along the side column from her ear to her shoulder, he smiled when he heard her moan in approval of his attention. When the elevator bell announced the arrival at his floor, she pushed him backwards through the open door, but he never let go of her creamy skin, chuckling as they moved as one. Finally reaching his door, he let go and grinned down at her, his cocky grin spreading wide across his face as he admired the faint mark he'd left near the crook of her shoulder. "Bet your '_cute'_ boyfriend wouldn't have done _that_…wouldn't have had the balls…" He waggled his eyebrows and ushered her into his apartment, grabbing her waist from behind as he kicked the door shut.

Wasting no time, he bucked his hips against her ass, making sure she knew that he was more than ready for their 'afternoon delight', and his fingers deftly popped open the button on her pants, immediately followed by lowering the zipper and thrusting his large hand into her now-open slacks. Rubbing his calloused finger pads against her satin panties, he could tell that she, too, was more than a little worked up from their impromptu make-out session in the elevator. "Mmm… So wet already, baby? So ready for me, huh?"

The low rumble of his baritone voice sent shivers straight from her ears to her clit, as it peaked with interest and anticipation. "Mm-hmm…Always for you, Booth…" Her reply was breathy and full of want as she grabbed his forearm, holding it against her torso while she ground against his thick fingers. With her other hand, she started to undo the buttons of her blouse, anxious to let Booth have full access to her body.

Seeing what she was up to, Booth temporarily removed his hand from the soft surface of her panties, grinning at her growl of disapproval at the loss of contact, and he pushed her clothes to the floor, holding her body steady as she toed out of her shoes to step out of her pant legs. Turning her around to face him, he palmed the backs of her thighs, encouraging her to wrap her legs around him. They had been together long enough that she understood what he wanted, but she wanted to shirk him of this suit first; if she was going to be wrapped around him, she wanted the offending material out of the way – she wanted to feel his skin against hers. Her hands dropped to his Cocky belt buckle, opening it deftly as she fiercely yanked on his zipper and popped the button completely off the pants.

As soon as she successfully shoved his trousers from his hips and stripped him of his blue shirt and white undershirt, he pulled her against his body once again, his fingers digging into the soft flash of her hips as he devoured her mouth like a starving man eating his last meal. They swallowed each other's moans as all four hands traversed now-familiar body parts. After Booth managed to get his lover's legs wrapped around his waist, he finally moved away from the foyer, walking towards the back of the apartment, to 'their' bed, as he considered it.

Separated by only their respective underwear, Brennan ground her heated core against his very generous erection as it strained against the material of his plaid boxers. When they managed to make it into his bedroom, Booth moved to the foot of the bed and lowered her, albeit with slight reluctance, separating their bodies momentarily. Letting her stand on her own for a few moments, Booth hooked his fingers into her lace and satin panties and pulled them from her body, worshipping her perfection as he moved. He let his rough fingertips trace the silky skin along her arms, her sides, her thighs, her breasts… He teased her body, knowing what she liked and what she didn't, what drove her crazy and what would push her to the edge. As his tongue made its way across her shoulders and neck, he meandered up to seize her lips as his own once more. She kissed him with enthusiasm, relishing in the familiarity of his taste as she tugged and nipped his sensually strong lips. Wrapping her arms completely around his perfectly symmetrical shoulders, she pressed her body fully against his, contouring her curves to his strength. Booth wrapped one arm around her small waist, pulling her near while his free hand traveled to find her eagerly waiting breast, teasing her pink nipple into a diamond point. He slowly lowered her backwards, pressing her into the mattress as he covered her much smaller body with his strong frame.

Temperance Brennan was not, by any means, a small woman. However, when compared to her partner, she was definitely feminine _and_ always felt as such. She felt loved, adored, fragile…precious… She relished the feelings Booth evoked in her – both physically and emotionally. There was a time that he asked her to put her brain in neutral and pop her heart into overdrive. For a long time, she didn't understand what he meant by that phrase… In fact, she didn't understand until she finally allowed herself to love her partner fully – that's when she comprehended _(at last!)_ what he'd been trying to teach her long ago. And in that moment, as she was pinned to the bed by her handsome and sexy partner, she once again let her mind rest and she simply _felt_ all the love he was showering down on her.

She raked her fingers up and down his back, feeling the ripples of his defined back muscles playing beneath his olive skin as he suspended his body above hers. His forearms were pressed against her sides, his elbows digging into the bed near her hips, as he hovered. His wide hands kneaded the swells of her breasts as his tongue shared equal attention between her pretty pale nipples. Brennan smiled when he moaned in appreciation of her ministrations as the pads of her fingers moved skillfully along the muscled structure of his back.

Barely able to restrain himself, Booth pushed up from her body, putting a bit of air between their bodies. He maneuvered so he was no longer straddling her thighs, but instead, kneeling between her legs, which parted for him without hesitation. He gripped her hands, intertwining his fingers with hers and leant forward, pulling her arms above her head as he came nose to nose with his breathtaking lover. With the precision that comes only with practice, his alert cock lined up perfectly with her heated core, and he groaned when his swollen head brushed against her slick folds.

Never able to get enough of her eyes, he spoke softly to her, "Baby, open your eyes…Let me see you…"

She did as he asked immediately, meeting his molten chocolates as he rocked his hips gently, pressing into her body in a smooth, well-rehearsed but still-mind-blowingly-new motion. She fought against her natural instinct roll her eyes back into her sockets and let her eye lids flutter closed; she knew that Booth often liked to maintain eye contact for as long as possible while making love. She could see her love for him reflected in his own depths; through his careful movements, she could feel the devotion he'd always promised her; she could hear his raw honesty as he openly admired her, thanked her and verbally worshipped her as he moved within her snug walls.

Setting a slow pace, Booth rocked into her deeply before pulling out completely and doing it all over again. "I intended for a quickie, Bones, so we could get back to work in time," he grinned as he released her hands and brought his to her face, never losing his rhythm. "But I can't help myself, Baby…" He lowered his lips to her throat and placed open mouthed kisses up to her ear, tangling his fingers in her loose curls. "I think we're gunna be late getting back from our lunch break…" He tugged her lobe into the warmth of his mouth. "I need this, Bones… I need this slow… and...deep," he punctuated his words with his movements, "I want you to know how much I love you… You're better than a quickie, babe…you're so much more…"

She felt herself blush through her breathlessness. For all of Booth's toughness, for his alpha-tendencies and over-protectiveness, he was always incredibly careful with her in bed, gentle and loving. He often spoke of his undying love for her; he made love to her with his words as much as he did with his body. All the things he wanted to say for 8 years, but was denied the permission to do so, he spilled when they were alone…He made promises of love – _years_ of love filled with happiness and devotion – and although she never thought she would enjoy that with a man, she found herself falling under Booth's magic spells more and more often.

As he increased the suction on her neck, he also quickened his tempo and pressure, soon pounding into her with a vigor that made her cry for more. Brennan met him, thrust for thrust, meeting him half-way, just as in everything else they did in life. Pulling his lips from her throat, where, _she was certain_, he'd marked her prominently, he moved back up to her ear, breathing heavily as he spoke again.

"C'mon, Baby…. I know you're close, I can feel it. Cum for me, Bones." He gently bit the outer shell of her ear, "I'm so close, Bones…so close…. But I won't let go until you do…Let go for me, I'll catch you….Baby, I've got you…I'll follow you…"

Her orgasm hit her with such force that all but her feet and shoulders came off the bed, arching into his body. She clawed at his messy, spiky hair as she chanted his name like a mantra. Writhing beneath his body, Brennan rode out her waves of pleasure as he still moved inside her core. As she started to settle down from the most intense portion of her explosion, Booth shifted, hiking one of her legs over his shoulder as he pressed into her deeper and deeper, his dick growing steadily harder as her pussy milked him with its unique massage.

As his movements lost their finesse, she felt him spiraling out of control and his eruption triggered her second orgasm of the afternoon, so soon after the first that she saw bursts of light flashing before her eyes. It wasn't until he responded to this description that she realized she'd spoken it aloud.

"Stars, babe…. You." _Kiss_. "Saw." _Kiss_. "Stars." _Deep kiss_… Pulling a chesty moan from her lungs, Booth smiled into the kiss, happy, as always, that he could do that to her.

When Booth felt himself slip from the warmth of her sheath, he rolled to the side, taking her with him, tucking her into his side snuggly. "Whaddya say we take the rest of the afternoon off, Bones? The work will be there tomorrow…" He smiled into her soft hair when he felt her weight sink into him, knowing he had satisfied her completely.

She stretched her arm across his stomach and grabbed hold of his waist as she fitted her curves against him tighter. "We could get an early start tomorrow to make up for the lost time…" Her voice was wispy and playful.

"Yeah, _or_ we could just chalk up all those late nights we worked when no one else did, and take today as compensation… that way we can still sleep tomorrow without having to wake up at the ass-crack of dawn…" He dropped a kiss on her head then reached down to pull the lightweight blanket up to cover their cooling bodies. "I love you, Bones…" he smiled against her temple and met her eyes when she looked up at him.

"I love you, too. You know that, right?" She didn't tell him as often as he told her, but that didn't mean she loved him less. They'd had this discussion hundreds of times by now, and though he always said he knew, Brennan still worried that he would someday doubt the depth of her feelings for him.

"I know you do, Bones. I know…" He tucked down into the blanket and turned to face her, wrapping his other arm around her pale body, essentially pulling her into a Boothy-cocoon.

After a short nap to recover their strength, Brennan woke to Booth's eyes watching her as he smiled.

"Don't stare at me while I sleep, Booth… I told you that before…" she mocked a sarcastic tone, but secretly delighted in the fact that she pleased him visually.

"You didn't even know… Had I not shifted my weight a little bit, you'd still be sleeping and I'd still be watching…" He grinned and leaned in for a kiss, which she readily gave to him. Weaving his fingers through her bed-mussed hair, he looked down at her again. "So, what do you think we should do with the rest of our afternoon, since we're playing hooky?"

She smiled, knowing at least one thing she wanted to do for him. She shrugged, a little shy, "do you want your next letter?" She wasn't with him when he'd read the second one; she had left it for him in her office to read while she worked, and she wondered if he preferred reading them alone rather than with her, now that he'd experienced the letters both ways. He didn't mention it when he read the third edition of her correspondence, but in the back of her mind, she wondered what he preferred…

"Hell yeah! Do you have 'em with you?" When she nodded, he chuckled, "Do you carry them everywhere, Bones?"

"No, just a few at a time…" She kissed his chest and pulled away, "I'll be right back." She slid from the bed and padded out through the living room to find her discarded bag laying where she dropped it, just inside the front door. Taking a quick inventory of the scattered clothes, she saw a few buttons lying abandoned on the hard wood floors and smiled as she made her way back into the bedroom to rejoin her mate in bed.

When she reentered the room, she saw that Booth had moved to actually lie beneath the bedspread rather than just the lightweight throw blanket. The dark blue spread covered him from his waist down and rested his head on one arm that was looped under, like a pillow. She admired his smooth chest as she circled to her side of the bed and crawled beneath the covers, pressing her naked body against his, enjoying that they were comfortable enough to not dress as soon as their loving was over. Brennan smiled as he dislodged his arm from his head and wrapped it around her tightly.

"Here you go." She rested the envelope on his chest and dropped a gentle kiss on his pec. "You still want me here?" She was careful, not sure what his answer would be.

"Of course I do, Bones. While I loved that you left me a letter at your office the week before last, I missed having you near me when I read it." Booth saw her face light up, despite her best efforts to hide her happiness, and he knew he'd given her the answer she was looking for. "Here, you hold the envelope and I'll pull out the letter, since my right arm is otherwise preoccupied…" He grinned as he slid the letter from its confines and opened it to read her thoughts.

_Dear Booth, _

_I know it's been several days since I last wrote, but I have been exceedingly busy. Today is Day 12 since I last saw you. _

_The dig has produced several onyx beads and countless pieces of silver. These items would have been used as currency as well as indicative signs of high status for the owner or owners; therefore it's been quite interesting in uncovering these relics. The team is working on dating them, but it is hypothesized, an 'educated guess' they tell me, that they will date to approximately the year 200 BC. While I do not subscribe to making guesses in any field of work, I have not made the assumption; I am merely sharing the information with you as I've been told. I do not want you to think that I would come to a conclusion that is unsubstantiated by evidence. _

_So, how are you, Booth? Are you successful in your training missions? I am sure you are; you are an excellent soldier, and an equally skilled educator. The young men and women under your charge are lucky to have you. _

_The courier will be here tomorrow to collect the post and I have these letters for you, and two for Parker. I have explained to Parker about the trees and flowers and birds that I have seen so far. Do not worry, I have not yet started to disillusion your son as to the soon-to-change history of mankind in which we are hoping to soon play a part of altering. I will leave that until the three of us are sitting at the diner upon both of our returns, and I will then proceed to explain to Parker, the reasons for my time away._

_I found a snake in my tent. It was a non-venomous tree snake. He was quite harmless (I call it a 'he', though it very well might have been a female…I didn't take the time to sex the reptile, so I give it the generic pronoun of 'he'). But nevertheless, I was alarmed at seeing him in one of my milk crates by my cot. I have a snake hook and used it to remove the intruder from my quarters. One of our local guides, Mal-uk, advised me that it has long been considered good luck to cohabitate with a green tree snake, and he seemed surprised that I did not wish to have the snake returned to my tent. I tried to explain to him that I no more subscribed to such superstitious myths as believing in good-luck-snakes as I do in agreeing with your belief in a God who supposedly created the earth in seven days. I must tell you, Booth, he __too__ had a hard time believing in such a higher power as the character from your book…Though I did try, to the best of my abilities, to explain the foundations of your religion, and he seemed to like the parts about loving your neighbor and taking one day to rest from work. Mal-uk then proceeded to invite me to his village for a meal with his extended family, indicating that I would be his personal guest. I politely turned down his offer, because I fear he may take the 'love thy neighbor' to a different level than I am comfortable with… I think there may be something lost in translation, as his English is very broken and my Malay is far from perfect, though I am improving every day. The local population does have access to attend various religious services, given the amount of outside influence across the Islands. Mal-uk's community, however, has preserved their ancestral beliefs and do not take part in exploring other rituals. They seem quite content in their stagnant, yet deep-rooted history. _

_Daisy has, thankfully, latched on to some younger interns and has been mercifully leaving me alone lately. We work side by side, just as we do at the lab, and that is acceptable. But for several days after we arrived, she spent evenings in my tent from the time we completed dinner to the time I would finally kick her out, sending her back to her own tent to sleep. I need my space, and she didn't seem to understand my hints. I am glad, however, that she finally found someone more appropriate with whom to spend her free time. This allows me to not only write to you, but to write in my journal and to catch up on some research papers that I am writing, in hopes to get them published in a future edition of Scientific Journal Monthly. I will tell you about those articles at a future date, as I do not have the energy required to explain the topics in this letter. _

_I find that I am quite tired, but sometimes have difficulty sleeping. The sun beating down on us all day during our digs certainly causes a form of exhaustion, and the physical efforts required for my duties also plays a part in my fatigue, I am sure. But it seems that when I lie down to sleep, I am suddenly wide awake once again. My cot is comfortable enough…I have an additional memory foam pad upon it. The temperature inside my tent is quite acceptable. I have no explanation for my restlessness, and no real reason to mention it in this letter, but I just thought I would let you know. Not that you could do anything about it… Not that you would even care, for that sake. But it is what it is. _

_So, I am going to wrap up this letter and prepare the others to be mailed tomorrow. I think of you often, Booth. Every day. I hope you are well. I hope you are safe. Do I sound too needy if I tell you that I miss you more than I thought possible? Now that I've written it, the question is null and void, but nonetheless, I do not wish to sound needy… I simply want you to know that you are missed. Tremendously. _

_Always, _

_Bones_

_PS It is 10:45pm local time and I can hear Daisy squealing from across the camp. Seems she and her new friends tried some of the locally distilled liquor. They call it Bangyan-an. It's made from the inflorescence of the sugar palm combined with hops-like barley. Smells vile and I have, thus far, refused to partake in its samplings. Good night, Booth. Sleep well. ~your Bones_ _:) (Is it appropriate to use the _:) _symbol when handwriting a letter or should I just draw a happy face? Not sure if texting etiquette is acceptable here…) _

Booth smiled as he read her insecurities in that last line. "Yes, Bones, it's fine to use whatever symbols you want when you're writing… It's your letter, so it's your call."

"I didn't want to seem stupid if I used it incorrectly." She shrugged and met his smile warmly, reaching up with her fingertip and tracing his jawline tenderly. "So…that's what I wanted to do with our afternoon of hooky… What do you want to do, Booth?"

In a single movement, he pressed Brennan onto her back and covered her body with his. Nuzzling into her neck, he let the musical sounds of her laughter ring in his ears for a few moments. "I can think of somethin' I wanna do, Bones…And we don't even need to get out of bed for it…"

Allowing his mouth a several additional minutes to pay tribute to her throat, Brennan moaned in agreement of his apparent plan. She gathered her momentum and flipped them over just as quickly as he had done to her. "That sounds acceptable, Agent Booth, but this time… I'm on top."

Chuckling darkly he fisted her hair and pulled her in for a kiss. Mumbling against her lips, he smiled, "now, isn't this better than lunch with your other boyfriend, Bones?"

"I'll let you know after our next course, Booth… But the odds are looking in your favor at the moment." She moved her mouth along his slightly stubbly jaw, over his bulging Adams Apple and finally down to the hollow of his throat, where she spent some time returning the attention he'd given to her, pressing the flat of her tongue against his racing pulse. "I _can_ tell you," she spoke against his scarred skin, "this is probably the best lunch break I've ever had…" She smiled as continued her taste-testing journey down his chest. "Now just relax, Booth, and let me take care of you…"

And take care of him, she did. But he did anything but relax…for the rest of the afternoon, neither partner actually _relaxed_, but they certainly enjoyed their impromptu day off from work.

**Postcript A/N**

**OK, Ladies, who wouldn't like to play hooky with Booth? And the few gentlemen who might be reading this… what about you? Are you going to deny the enticing thoughts that develop in your brain at the idea of spending the afternoon with Brennan in bed? LOL I thought not…**

**So, what did you think? Please let me know. If I don't have reviews, I don't know if anyone liked or hated this chapter/story; or for that matter, if anyone is still reading it! Please take a moment to share your thoughts! **

**Peace & love always, my friends, **

**~jazzy **


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N Hello and welcome back! This is a long chapter – fair warning! **

**I had a question from "guest" after my last chapter, but since you didn't sign in, I couldn't email you directly. You were wondering is 'Bangyan-an' is a real liquor. Yes it is – I researched it online and it is a real drink brewed by natives in the Maluku islands. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bones or its characters, just this crazy story line filled with letters and thoughts from Brennan's mind. :) **

**Please R&R! enjoy!**

"Fuck you, Booth! You can go to your metaphorical hell, you controlling bastard!" Brennan slung her empty water bottle in his direction, which he caught with ease, pissing her off even more.

"Now just wait a Goddamn minute, Bones. You can't go flying off the handle like this! I was just trying to talk to you!" Booth growled as he clenched his jaw tight, crushing the water bottle violently between his hands. "You're blowing this way outta proportion! What's your problem today!?"

"What's MY problem, Booth?" She stepped forward, shoulders squared and chin defiantly raised. "_You're_ my problem…You're _always_ the problem, Booth." She turned her back to him and stepped towards the door before he could grab her arm. Realizing she had more to say, she spun around on her own accord and stamped her foot. "I do NOT need a babysitter. I can damn well decide what I do, when I do it and how I do it. I don't need you telling me what to do. I don't need you coddling me. I don't need you lecturing me when to work, when not to work, when to eat and when to sleep. You think you own me? Well you're wrong!" She was so angry, she was close to crying, but she refused to let her tears start flowing now; not in the middle of a fight. Not this time. "You don't own me! No one owns me. I was just fine on my own, you know. I was on my own for _years_ and managed just fine to get through life without a man telling me what to do. And if you think, just because I agreed to this asinine relationship with you, that you can all of a sudden dictate my schedule to me, you're in for a rude awakening." She turned towards the door once more, grabbing her messenger bag and coat from the hook and flung open the door to his apartment, not caring that it slammed into the wall behind it, most likely causing a hole in the dry wall.

"Where the hell do you think you're going? You can't just yell your piece and leave! I have a say in this goddamn relationship too, you know Bones!" He followed her into the hall and grabbed her upper arm to stop her further retreat.

"Take your hands off me, Booth!" She yanked her arm from his grip and pushed him out of her personal space, her flat palm landing solidly against his heart, against his scar, as she shoved him. "This was a mistake. I great big, fucking, insane mistake! I always knew it was going to explode in our eyes…I'm just surprised it took this long for us to realize we're not meant for each other after all. Now, leave me alone! I'm going home."

Grabbing the belt of her trench coat, Booth pulled her against him, wrapping his arms around her torso firmly. "The phrase is 'blow up in our face', Bones. And no, this was not a mistake. _WE_ are not a mistake. You are not leaving until we talk this through. Just because we have a fight doesn't mean we're not meant for each other." Booth struggled to keep his voice calm as he spoke into her ear, knowing that his nosy neighbors had already popped their heads from their apartments to see the spectacle that was Seeley Booth and Temperance Brennan's first major all-out-scream-match.

Wiggling from his arms, she turned around, firing daggers at him through her icy blue eyes. "I told you, take your hands off me. I don't need this shit. I don't need someone telling me what to do." Keeping her feet firmly planted where they were, shoulder-width apart, she leaned her upper body in his direction, gritting her tiny teeth as she spoke. "_I don't need __**you**__, Booth_." Throwing her arms out in exasperation, she turned away and then turned back again. "I'm through. I'll come back when you're not here to gather my belongings." She spun on her heel and stalked off towards the elevator.

"Oh, _no you don't_, Bones! You don't get to walk out on me just because you're a little bit pissed off. We are NOT through, dammit, and you fucking know it!" Now, he was **really** mad. _How dare she walk away from me?! After everything we've been through? Oh hell no…_

"No, you know what I _do_ 'fucking know', Booth!?" She spun back again, this time running into his chest and she pushed back against him, putting more distance between them. "I know that I never should have agreed to this relationship with you! What the _hell_ were we thinking? We fight! It's what we DO! What kind of foundation is that for a relationship? BE HONEST BOOTH!"

"That's right, Bones. We do fight! It IS what we do! But you know what we do even better? We love each other… Goddamn, Bones," his voice softened as he stepped forward, grabbing her hands to stop her from pulling away again. "You might not think you need me…But hell, Bones, I need you… And I'm not letting you go without a fight." He closed the distance between them, still holding her hands tight, but not so much that he would cause pain. "I lost you once; I nearly lost you permanently. I know what it's like to live without you… and I don't want to go back to that existence."

Booth let go of her hands and moved his open palms up to her biceps, realizing that she was no longer fighting to leave or struggling against him. "Look me in the eyes, Bones, and tell me that you don't believe we're better together than we are apart…" He swallowed thickly, silently praying that she couldn't do it. "Tell me that you think this _minor_ hiccup is worth throwing everything away."

Brennan's will betrayed her, letting tears escape from behind her eyes as she looked up into Booth's pleading brown eyes. Taking in a shuddering breath, she gently backed away. "I need time, Booth. And space. Please… let me go… I can't stay here…"

His heart clenched watching her back away, her pale blue/gray eyes shedding tears freely. Shaking his head, he reached aimlessly towards her. "No, Bones…" he whispered. "Let's talk about this. Please, come back inside, let me make this right… please… don't go; not like this. Don't let these be our final words…" But she was out of reach at that point, and his feet were rooted in place, unable to move him towards her.

She sniffed, her chin quivering in pain. "I always knew, Booth." She stifled a cry with a deep breath. "I always knew I couldn't be the woman you needed me to be…I'm not the one… I'm not the one…" She turned quickly and pushed through the door to the stairwell, not wanting to wait for the elevator.

"No, Bones…" he whispered to the now-empty hallway. "No, you're wrong, baby… you _are_ the one…"

Booth scrubbed his hand over his face and turned back to his apartment, struggling with whether or not he should follow her and risk pushing her further away or giving her the space she thought she needed, hoping that she'd calm down… He ignored the pitying look he received from Mrs. Holmes at the end of the hall, who'd obviously stood out there, witnessing the entire scene, and moved silently back into his apartment, in a daze.

The silence in his home was deafening. We walked to the sofa and sat down hard, ignoring the screams from his injured back when he landed crooked.

_I wasn't trying to tell her what to do…I know she values her work…I know she gets wrapped up what she's dealing with ancient remains..._ He thought to himself. _But hell, she didn't get home until 3am…She got pissed that I called her at 1:00, wondering where she was… All I wanted to do was make sure she was OK. What if she'd been hurt? What if she'd been in an accident? What the hell does she expect from me? I fucking love her; of course I'm going to worry about her. All I did was ask that she call me once in a while…and eat some fucking food! She hadn't eaten anything except a stupid granola bar since breakfast. I left her alone at lunch when she said she was busy. I left her alone when she said she didn't want dinner. When I called her at 1:00 and she said she was still tied up, I didn't comment on it... _He felt the unmistakable feeling of tears stinging the backs of his eyes and the twinge at the bridge of his nose, indicating he was going to lose his battle against tears…

He let his head fall back against the couch, thinking about their morning. He didn't say anything to her when she crawled into bed at 3:15; he simply kissed her and said good night. He wanted to let her rest before they talked, knowing that she would be defensive. But he never expected she'd be _that_ defensive. In fact, he'd let her sleep past 10:00, allowing her to wake on her own. He even had breakfast ready for her; he made gourmet coffee, still-warm blueberry bread right from the oven and fresh cut fruit – one of her favorite weekend-breakfasts.

Thinking back, he realized she'd entered the kitchen timidly, undoubtedly expecting him to comment on her late arrival. But he waited, letting her eat in peace before saying anything. Then, while doing the dishes, with his back to her, he simply said, "You know, Bones, I would appreciate a call when you're planning to _not_ come home at night. At least I would know not to lay awake wondering and worrying about you. I was exhausted… And instead of sleeping, I sat up waiting for you all night." He thought he'd kept his voice calm and steady, treading the waters carefully, knowing that she got pissed when he tried to hurry her along or when he tried to force her to do something she wasn't ready for in the relationship.

_And she… she just exploded…Really, really blowing the argument out of proportion… But that's just something Bones does, _he thought_. I should be used to it by now; I should be prepared for her temper. But this…this was more. Something's going one – what the hell would have triggered that?_ Pushing off from the couch, he walked sluggishly to the dining room and cleared the remainder of the breakfast dishes from the table. Tossing a napkin in the trash can, something caught his eye on the counter; something he'd forgotten about, but must have unknowingly uncovered when he was going through his piles of old papers that morning. Picking up the letter, he immediately recognized the handwriting and he immediately felt nauseous. _Bones was standing here while I was doing the dishes…my back was to her… She was standing here silently – I thought she was waiting for me to speak, but she found this… Shit! I forgot this was even here… I never even bothered to read it after she left…it just got buried in all that shit…_

He spun on his heels and ran to the bedroom to dress quickly, pulling on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Running out the door, he let it slam shut and he took the stairs two at a time to get down to his truck. The letter remained open on the countertop where he'd dropped it.

_Seeley, _

_I think this is a mistake. You and I are good together. I think that, if given the chance, Parker and I will learn to get along. I can amend my selfish ways – you are not the first to indicate to me that I'm selfish. I can't help it, I love you. I love being with you. I am not a woman interested in settling down – well, I wasn't interested in that until I met you. You have helped me see that staying in one place might not be such a bad thing. Give me another chance to make this right. Please. There's plenty of work here in DC to keep me busy – I don't need to go back to Afghanistan in order to get the good stories. With all the politicians here, there are more juicy scoops than a journalist can shake a stick at. _

_You said this was not about Temperance, that it was about you. You've told me time and again that Temperance wasn't the one for you, that you two are too fundamentally different. If that is true, then why do I feel like you're dumping me for her? I'd like to ask you to re-examine who you are, who we are…who we __were__. You know as well as I do, that we can make it; we are very compatible. I can't even remember a single fight that we had that lasted more than a few minutes… how many couples can say that? I think that's a great foundation for a solid relationship, don't you? _

_Please reconsider. I'll be staying at the Hilton and look forward to your call. _

_Love always, _

_Hannah_

B/B/B/B

Pounding on her door, Booth called in. "Bones! Open up. We need to talk."

"Go away, Booth. I have nothing to say." She called out from her seat on the couch, blowing her nose before she buried her face again into the throw pillow.

"Bones," he spoke quietly, but he knew she could still hear him. "I'd like you to let me in…I don't want to come in there unless you let me in…But I have my own key, you know…"

He waited for a few moments. "Bones?" He dropped his head against the door in exasperation, "Please, let's talk. I'm coming in."

She cried into the pillow, her words muffled as she yelled them. "If you come in here, I'll call the cops!"

Suddenly, she felt his familiar palm on her shoulder, causing her to jump, swinging her arm out to push his hand away. "No! Don't touch me!" Her eyes were red-rimmed, her nose and cheeks flushed and her lips swollen, all of which told Booth she'd been crying since she left his house.

He knelt down beside the couch, still touching her, pulling her against his expansive chest. And though she struggled, she finally gave in, not having the energy to fight him anymore, and he pulled her close. "Shh…Bones…" He pressed his lips to her hair. "Shhh…"

"When – when did you see her? When did she give you that letter?" She asked through sobs, wanting to push back against him, to knock him onto his ass, but she simply cried into his t-shirt. "You're already sick of me, aren't you? You don't want to be with me anymore…" She pushed back against him again, giving herself some space as she sat up. "You told her we are too fundamentally different? When were you planning to tell me? Don't you think I have a right to know!?"

He was leaning forward, trying to interrupt her, to set things straight, but she wouldn't let him speak. When he reached for her again, she shook her head and pushed him away again, this time with less vigor and more of a defeated look in her eyes. "You should go, Booth." She pushed up from the couch and turned her back to him, expecting him to respect her wishes. "I can't do this now. I may never be able to do this again…"

Jumping to his feet, he rushed to stand behind her, and placed his hands on her shoulders. He didn't try to turn her around, knowing that she would fight him, but he stood close enough for her to know he wasn't backing down. "Bones," he began as a whisper, "would you let me explain, please? It's not what you're thinking, baby."

She pulled away without a word and started down the hallway towards her bedroom. "It doesn't matter what I think anymore, Booth. I can't give you what you want… I'm not the one…" She closed the bedroom door quietly and he heard the lock click into place from his spot at the end of the hall.

_I can't believe I let myself get into this. I can't believe I let him get so close._ Brennan berated herself as she sat at her vanity. _I should have known better…he was bound to leave me eventually…everyone does. Why would Booth be any different? What do I have to offer him that would make him want to stay? I am not good in public; I don't understand modern culture; I don't understand common colloquialisms; I have no experience with relationships; I don't want the white picket fence with 2.5 children and a dog…_ Looking down at her hand, she broke out in tears all over again. _Why did I accept this damn ring? What the hell was I thinking? Oh, God, it's all been a big mistake… _She covered her face with her hands and sobbed openly, not caring how loud she was, not caring if he was still there or if he had left, like she expected him to. She sobbed for an emotion she never thought she could experience, and for the loss of a friendship, and the inevitable loss of her partner. She mourned for something she didn't completely understand.

She didn't hear him unlock the door, she didn't hear him approach, she didn't hear the words he was trying to say. But she felt him, she sensed him; she wished he wasn't there, but suddenly she was in his arms and sobbing loudly into his neck, holding on for the last time. She would allow herself one last Boothy consolation hug. One last inhalation of his unique scent. One final sweep of her fingers against the short dark hairs at the back of his neck. And when she tried to pull away, this time he let her. He was letting her go; that's how she saw his release. He was saying goodbye.

As she turned away once more, unable to say the words, he caught her hand and sat down on the vanity bench, pulling her onto his lap. "Bones," he wrapped his other arm around her hips, holding her close. He could see in her eyes that she had closed him out already. She stared straight ahead, not acknowledging nor denying his gesture or words. "Bones, please look at me." When she didn't turn, he released her hand and raised his fingers to her chin, nudging her to look at him.

She turned her face towards his, but she still didn't meet his stare. She focused on his cheek, his chin, his Adams Apple, his ear…anywhere but his eyes… His eyes always made her melt and she wasn't willing to be weak anymore. Never again.

"Listen to me, please, baby. I love you. I. Love. You. And only you." He could see fresh tears welling in her eyes, but she defiantly refused to let them fall, or to respond to his sentiment. "Bones, I know you're upset. And I understand why. I found the letter after you left."

She mumbled, still not looking up. "I wasn't supposed to find it… You were keeping it from me…"

"It's not that, Bones. I have no secrets from you; anything in my house is fair game to be read…You can look at anything, Bones. But that…That letter…I hadn't even read it. I forgot it was there…" Sighing as he gathered his thoughts, he allowed a tear of his own to fall. "Look, Bones, the night that I kicked Hannah out, she left the key on the countertop along with that note. I never read the note; it got covered up, along with the key, and buried beneath that pile of shit that I was too damn lazy to do anything with. Baby," he palmed her cheek, "Bones, please believe me… I do love you. You are the one for me. There is no one else. Never has been anyone else who can fill your shoes and there never will be anyone either."

"So, it's not a recent letter." She spoke it as a sentence rather than a question.

"Correct," he replied quietly. "It's from before you and I finally got our shit together, Bones…Before you were kidnapped." He spoke against her hair, pressing his lips gently against her temple.

"You told her I wasn't the one…" Brennan's tone was flat, saddened by what she read in Hannah's letter. "You told her we're too different."

He rested his cheek against the top of her head and sighed quietly. "Bones, she knew that I loved you since before she and I ever met. When you turned down my offer, I was pretty sure that I would never have the opportunity to be with you, so I tried talking myself out of loving you. When she questioned my feelings for you, about a month after she came to DC, I told her that you and I weren't compatible. I had to tell her _something_…I had to tell _myself_ something… I was living a lie and trying to convince myself otherwise." He flexed his hand against her hip. "I never stopped loving you, Bones… _**That**_ is not a lie, I would swear on my mother's grave."

Brennan sat quietly, not quite sinking into Booth like her body wanted to, but not struggling to get away, either. "You didn't fight with her…She said that you were compatible because you didn't fight." She swallowed thickly, "We fight all the time, Booth. That's going to destroy us someday."

"Yes, we do fight. But Bones, we've always fought… It's not even that we _fight_ all the time, as much as it is that we bicker. And Bones – that's what makes us who we are. We are better together, you know it and I know it. Our arguments or debates, they make us better people. We can make each other see things in ways that we didn't before. And no, I don't believe that is going to destroy us. I think it makes us stronger."

He pulled his head back and looked down at her. She was still staring at nothing particular, not making eye contact.

"Do you really believe that? That we're stronger from our fights? Because I don't mind telling you, Booth, right now I feel pretty damn weak…" She dropped her eyes to where his hand rested on her thighs, as she sat across his lap. "I don't think I've ever felt this weak – or helpless – not even when I was abandoned by my family."

"Well," he gathered his thoughts, "this was worse than most of our fights. And I understand why you were so upset, Bones. Finding that letter… thinking the worst… I know how much that would have upset me if I found a similar one. But, how about if we just agree that when one of us is going to get that upset about something, we talk it through first? Before we let it explode, we dampen that fuse instead… And we talk… Then neither of us will have to feel weak or helpless."

"I'm not experienced at relationships, Booth," she finally raised her saddened eyes and met his dark orbs. "But I really like what we had…I really enjoyed it…"

"Don't talk about it in the past tense, Bones. We still have it." He wiped away another stray tear that disobediently sprung from the corner of her eye. "This was just an argument brought on by a misunderstanding…and by my own stupidity of not throwing that damn thing away the night she left it."

"You're not stupid, Booth. You shouldn't doubt yourself," she suddenly turned the conversation around to something with which she was familiar. "You are a very smart man, Booth. Very."

He shook his head slowly, giving a rueful laugh. "No, Bones. I get by, but I'm not smart. Hodgins is smart… I'm street-wise, there's a difference."

"No," she countered. "Hodgins is nearly a genius. Not quite, but almost. You are smart. More than street-wise…Don't doubt yourself."

He smiled at her, recognizing that she was trying her best to console him. And while he wanted to turn the tables and point out that she was a genius and she still doubted herself all the time, he refrained, letting her have this one. "Thanks, Bones. That means a lot coming from you."

She dropped her gaze again, this time, bringing her fingers to rest on his forearm. Fighting back new tears, she took a deep breath. "I don't want to break up, Booth… I… I don't know what to do…"

Her words were so soft that he nearly missed them, but heard enough. He shifted the arm she was holding and took her fragile hand in his, dipping his head to meet hers nearly nose-to-nose. "We're not breaking up, Bones, not _ever_."

"You don't know that, Booth. You can't predict the future."

"I can. I can predict that we will never break up. We will continue to work together; we will grow old together; we will, eventually, have a family together…And we will fight…and bicker… But we will never break up…" He smiled when he felt her body start to relax against his. "And we will laugh…and we will cry…and we will make love. Wonderful, _beautiful_ love. We will come closer and closer to breaking the laws of physics every time; and while we may never achieve such a goal, we'll have a helluva good time tryin'…" His grin grew and he saw the corners of her lips curl up just a bit.

She raised her crystalline blues up, looking deep into his dark pools. "I don't want to lose you by doing something stupid, Booth. Please, promise me that if I ever do or say something that would cause you to leave, you'll tell me… I thought," she swallowed and took a deep breath. "I thought, when I read that letter, that you and Hannah had somehow reconnected and…that she was going to take you away from me…"

Bringing both his hands to her cheeks, he cradled her face. "Bones, _**no one**_ could ever take me away from you. I promise you that. I'm yours – completely. And my only wish is that you don't throw me to the curb when Mr. Multiple-PhD-Published Scientist-Genius comes along and tries to sweep you off your feet. Every day I worry that you'll find someone else, Bones; our insecurities are not that different from each other's."

His revelation told her a lot, and for that she was thankful. She smiled, slowly at first, as they got lost in each other's eyes. When she broke the staring contest, letting her eyes flit briefly to his lips then back up, he took that as his cue. Leaning in, he brushed his lips to hers in a tender, apologetic kiss, which she returned just as gingerly. He rested his forehead against hers, his eyes closed in silent prayer, weaving one hand into her hair, while his other found its way down her back and finally rested on her hip.

She watched him intently, knowing he was sending up a prayer to whatever Saint he felt deserved thanks. Seeing his shoulders relax she knew he was through with his wishes and she raised her hands to his still-stubbly cheeks. "I love you, Booth." She whispered as she closed the distance between their lips. "I'm so sorry I jumped to such an illogical conclusion." She was speaking against his mouth and he gratefully swallowed her words while gently nipping at the corner of her lips. "Please forgive me…"

Without a word, he slanted his mouth, covering hers completely in acceptance of her apology while simultaneously offering up one of his own. She opened to him and his tongue swept into her warmth, meeting with hers in a tender and deep kiss. Moans were swallowed and happy tears escaped and hands held fast to clothing and body parts. When oxygen became overwhelmingly necessary, Booth trailed his tongue along her jaw and settled at her earlobe. Tugging it between his rolled lips, he let it go with a slight pop and rested his mouth over her ear. "I love you, Temperance…So much it hurts and feels wonderful all at the same time." He licked just inside the outer shell of her ear, causing her to shiver involuntarily. "I'm yours, Bones. For always…don't ever doubt that, babe."

She pulled back from his grasp, and he was slightly alarmed until she reached for his hand, pulling him to his feet to stand before her. Without a word, she reached for the bottom hem of his t-shirt and dragged it slowly up his body, revealing his smooth, tan torso to her eyes for the first time that day. He raised his arms, allowing her to pull it from his body, remaining as silent as she was the whole while.

Once his shirt was dropped to the floor, she brought her hands to his chest, dancing them lightly across the skin she'd learned to love so long ago. She trailed her fingers, in mirror image to each other, along his shoulders and clavicles until they reached in the middle, at the hollow of his throat. Leaning in, she pressed her open lips to the place where her fingers met, feeling his racing pulse beneath the flat of her tongue. He brought his hands up and rested them lightly on her hips while letting his head fall back, giving his throat to her.

She moved her hands down his chest, gently scraping her nails across his skin, teasing his flat nipples into hard little nubs before dropping further to his tight abdomen. She moved her mouth up his jawline and rested just in front of his ear. "I need you, Booth. I need all of you. Right now… and forever."

He could hear the need in her voice, in the shakiness of her words, in the hotness of her breath. She never failed to cause his heart to race, but right in this moment, with her hands trailing along his skin hungrily, her mouth sucking and biting the length of his neck and throat, he felt dizzy. "Bones…" His voice was low and gravelly, his fingers tightened on her hips, pulling her against him firmly. "You've got me, Baby... I'm all yours…forever…" He met her lips eagerly, plundering her mouth with his tongue, tasting her as she tasted him. They dueled for dominance, neither wanting to give up the lead, but then, Booth realized that she needed this more than he did in that moment. She needed to control their pace, especially on this occasion. Since embarking on the personal aspect of their relationship, they'd definitely battled for the lead in the bedroom, and more often than not, Booth won… But on this particular afternoon, he willingly gave in to her need for control and relinquished the command of the deep kiss.

Brennan knew the minute her partner had given in, and she was glad she didn't need to explain any further. This morning she'd woken up, expecting him to be upset with her for her late arrival at home. But, instead, he'd gotten up and made her a delicious breakfast, letting her eat it in peace before broaching the subject. Then, as Booth washed _her_ breakfast dishes, he made a simple, completely rational request "_call me when you're not coming home_." But, while he was asking her for that one _logical_ favor, she saw the envelope sitting on the countertop – '_Seeley_' was written in unmistakably female penmanship…and Brennan knew that handwriting, she'd seen it enough times during Hannah's stay in Washington that Brennan would know it at first glance.

Unable to control her possessive instinct, the very same instinct she often ridiculed Booth for demonstrating, she opened the envelope quietly and read the words that were sprawled out across the page. Mentally, she felt her time with Booth come to a screeching halt, certain that the letter was recently written and his feelings for her changed. She'd overreacted, but her actions were uncontrollable. She yelled, and threw something at her lover – what, she couldn't quite remember – and then stormed from the apartment, pushing him away as he tried to talk to her.

Arriving at home, he was everywhere…his belongings surrounded her in every room; little snippets of their lives together over the past eight years. Booth had infiltrated her existence completely, and she was certain she was about to lose him forever. Unable to keep the sobs at bay, she'd collapsed in an exhausted heap on the couch and cried into her pillow; the pillow that smelled like Booth because he often rested his head on it while watching a game on her big screen TV. Brennan wanted to hate that pillow – she wanted to hate that smell – she wanted to hate everything in her home that reminded her of happier times – she wanted to hate the man that she loved.

But she couldn't hate any of those things…especially the man.

She loves Booth and everything he is…She loves the man he was when he first walked into her lecture; she loves the man he was when they kissed just after he fired her; she loves the man who'd saved her countless times; she loves the man who offered her everything he had, only to be turned down, yet still agreed to work with her, no matter the pain he felt; she loves the man who fought for his country and the man who tried to move on without her; she loves the man who worked tirelessly to find her when she was tied up in a basement in Maryland…And the man he became since all that… That was the Seeley Booth she loved the most… And no matter how hard she tried to hate him, she knew it was all in vain.

So, when he relinquished control of their kiss, she ramped up her enthusiasm and pushed him backwards towards the foot of the bed, unbuckling his jeans on the way. When they reached the bed, the pressed on his chest and he didn't fight her as he fell backwards onto the burgundy spread. Brennan took a moment to visually take in the image that was her lover, as he landed in the center of her king sized, medium-soft mattress. He was shirtless, his olive tanned skin glowing with a thin sheen of sweat; his pants were open at the waist, affording her a glimpse of his bellybutton _and lower_, which told her he'd dressed in a hurry, because he was not wearing underwear. His eyes were as black as the pitch on the rooftop, and his jaw – _that amazing jaw_ – was clenched tight as he tried to fight what she knew was his urge to take over.

She smiled, knowing that he was permitting her to do whatever she wanted. "Booth, I love the way you look." Her words were breathy and mindless; she allowed her voice to speak whatever it wanted to, unfiltered. Crawling over him, straddling his hips, she kissed the center of his chest as she ran her palms up his sides, from his waist to his armpits. "And I love the way you feel." She pushed his arms above his head and continued to caress the undersides of his arms as her mouth moved to his neck and scarred jawline. "And I love the way you taste."

Without permission, his hips bucked against hers, pressing his painful erection against her body. It took all the energy Booth could muster to allow his fiancée to maintain the lead. He wanted to flip her body over, strip her naked and pound into her sweet heat until neither of them could move another inch. He wanted to feel her body as it squeezed him in the most intimate way possible. He wanted to fill her with everything he had, practicing for the day she allowed him to finally plant that special seed deep inside her body.

He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to maintain some semblance of control before he blew his wad inside his jeans. An hour ago, he thought he'd lost her completely. He feared that the one person who completed him was walking out of his life for good, leaving him terror-stricken like never before. The mere idea of not having her in his life made him want to claim her, take her as his own, over and over until she realized they belonged together. The frightening spark that nearly caused him to go up in flames, spoke to an inner, deeply-rooted, alpha-wolf…needing to mark her as his personal beta. He knew it was wrong, but that didn't change the fact that he felt the desires to do so.

But he reminded himself that she needed this; she had just put herself through something she would have viewed as a terrifying possibility: abandonment. Temperance Brennan, despite all outward appearances, lived in a constant state of fear. Everyone she ever loved or trusted had turned on her. Her own family – first her parents, then her brother, had all left her by the time she was just 15. The state to which her well-being was entrusted ignored several years of abuse in the system. The men who claimed to love her only used her to get their rocks off then left her, calling her terrible names behind her back… All these things, when piled on top of one person, would cause that victim to construct walls around themselves for protection, and the world-famous anthropologist was no exception to that rule. She was human; she was loving; she was beautiful inside and out… And, more than ever, she needed to take what was hers. And Seeley Booth was hers to take.

Brennan stretched her torso against his, lining her arms up atop his, as they were still extended to where she'd pushed them. Shimmying further up, so her hands were high enough to reach his, she wove her fingers between his and descended her mouth onto the welcoming lips that greeted her eagerly. Running her tongue along Booth's lower lip, she pulled it into her warmth, suckling it tenderly, before turning her attention to his upper lip, giving it the same treatment. She could feel his grip on her fingers tighten, and he tried to pull his arms down, but she pressed hard, keeping him as he was.

"No, Booth," she breathed again his mouth, "let me have this."

Unable to deny her, unwilling to defy her wishes, he simply nodded and kissed her hard, bucking his hips once more. She pushed herself up, straddling his waist, her core resting against the tightness of his lower stomach, and trailed her fingertips lightly along his arms, shoulders and chest, never taking her eyes off his. Her lips were parted, as if she was going to say something, but nothing came out. She rocked her hips, grinding her heated center against his firm body, the lace of her panties and the snugness of her jeans creating a delicious friction.

She slowly crossed her hands, grabbing the hem of her t-shirt and peeled it slowly up her body. "I told you before," she spoke breathily, "you have perfect acromion." Her lips rose into the half-smile that he loved so much. "I have decided that you also have a perfect chest… It tapers perfectly down to your proportionally appropriate waist. And I love the way your muscles move when I touch you." As if to demonstrate her meaning, she rubbed the pads of her fingers across his abdomen, along the ripples that made up his metaphorical six-pack, watching as his abdominis and obliques involuntarily reacted to her touch, causing his breath to hitch in the process.

Removing her fingers from his skin, she reached behind her back and unhooked her bra, letting it fall from her shoulders and tossing it off to one side. Booth's breathing was labored as he struggled to maintain his control, raking his darkened gaze across her half naked body. "Bones - " He swallowed thickly, "baby… you're so fucking beautiful…" He raised his eyes to her now-deep blue eyes, "let me touch you…please."

She smiled and slowly shook her head, "not yet, Booth." She started to move backwards, sliding down his body so she was straddling his thighs. "I want to do something first…" She grinned as she hooked her fingers into the belt loops of his jeans and started pulling them down when he raised his ass from the bed. Once he was free of the constraining material, his erection sprang free and stood at attention, in all his naked glory.

Booth raised his head and watched with darkened eyes as his lover let her eyes wander up and down the length of his tall body. When her focus settled on the object of her desire, she reached up and wrapped her wiry fingers around his thick erection. With her legs on either side of his upper calves, she lowered her lips to the swollen head of his penis, taking him into her mouth with a gentle moan. Unable to watch what she was doing to him, lest he explode on impact, Booth dropped his head to the mattress below and fought to keep himself from thrusting his length into her welcoming warmth. "Ah, shit, Bones…" He groaned as she took him in further, "Mmm…"

Moving painfully slow, Brennan swirled her tongue around the smooth skin at the tip of his cock, tasting the pre-cum that seeped out in anticipation. After several moments of teasing, she finally took him in fully, sinking down until she could feel this length press against the back of her throat. Thankful that she didn't have a strong gag reflex, she sucked hard, pulling him yet further and hummed in approval when he involuntarily bucked into her.

Pulling up, she let him fall from her mouth with a loud pop. Smiling seductively from her position, she spoke against his throbbing dick, her breath causing shivers to run up his body. "What do you want, Booth? What do you want me to do for you?" She licked up this length as she waited for his answer.

Raising his head again, he pinned her with an intense stare. "Take off the rest of your clothes," his voice was deep and gravelly. "And let me touch you… Before I fucking explode, Bones… let me touch you…"

She smiled softly and backed further away in order to peel away her pants. She watched him as he watched her, pushing down her jeans and panties at the same time. When she stood back up to her full height, she moved to hover above him, straddling his hips and rubbing his erection against her wet heat. Tilting her hips, she lined up in preparation of taking him in. Brennan met his eyes and grew serious. "Touch me, Booth. Put your hands on me…"

He didn't waste a second; his arms flew down and his open hands grasped her hips, pulling her down onto him, thrusting up to meet her in the process. He wrapped his arms completely around her waist and sat up to grab her lips. Using that momentum, Booth managed to flip her body beneath his as he thrust deep into her heat. He cradled her head in his arms as she pressed her face into the crook of his neck. Her fingers clawed at his back, desperate to be as close to him as possible as she met his rhythm with impatience.

"Booth… Yes…" Her words tickled his skin and he moaned as the sensation. He let himself get lost in the feel of her tightness constricting around his dick, the pressure of her hands against the planes of his back, her lips on his neck as she sucked.

He craned his head back, letting her have access to his throat, understanding her need to mark him as he often did to her. As she sucked harder, pulling his skin far into her mouth and nipping him playfully, he increased the speed and strength with which he was pressing into her. The unmistakable feeling at the base of his spine told him he was getting close, but he wanted to take care of her…he wanted his Bones to find the satisfaction she deserved first.

"Bones, baby…" He mumbled as he reached down and grabbed her thigh, pulling it up higher, hooking it in the bend of his elbow, changing the angle of entry to one he knew would bring her to the edge. "I wanna feel you, baby… I wanna feel you cum….while I'm buried deep inside you…"

"Booth…tell me…promise me…"

Innately knowing what she needed, he pressed his lips against her ear while he continued to pound into her body. "I love you, Bones… I will never leave you…I will always, _always_ be with you…" He skimmed his lips along the outer shell of her adorable ear, the ear that he learned to love so long ago… His breathing was labored with the exertion of their love, his tongue thirsty for the taste of her. "I'm yours forever… I believe in who we are, _as a couple_…I love you, Bones…I will always take care of you…I promise, _Temperance_."

At his vow, she shattered. Splintering beneath his strong body, her orgasm tore through her being, sending tremors like spider webs from her core to her limbs. She felt tears spilling from her eyes as she clung to her lover. "Mine…You're mine…" He heard her hoarse whisper as he continued to move inside her, allowing her to ride out her waves.

"All yours, Bones…Only yours, baby…" He pressed harder and deeper, pulling her leg higher to reach his shoulder, tightening her body around his even more. With a final plunge, he felt his balls hitch as he bottomed out, pressing against her cervix as he exploded. "Aw fuck, Boooonessss…" he grunted through clenched teeth as he dug his fingers into her loose hair, relishing in the softness surrounding him.

After several minutes, Booth rolled to his side, pulling his girl with him, wiping away the remnants of her nearly-dried tears as he pressed a kiss to her temple. "Yours, babe…Don't ever doubt that." He hooked his finger beneath her chin and tilted her to face him.

"I'm sorry I ever doubted you, Booth. That was very irrational of me." Her voice was small, but the timbre sated.

"Emotions make us irrational, Bones. Just try to remember that I'd never stray from your side. We can always talk through any questions you might have." He tightened his arm around her and moved his free hand to her tummy, trailing his fingertips lightly over her alabaster skin.

She smiled and rested her palm against the scar above his heart. "I'd like you to throw away that letter." Her eyes pleaded, hoping that he wouldn't ask her any further questions, and she was pleased.

"Consider it done, babe. We can even burn it if you'd like." He smiled, his eyes dancing in the light.

"That's not necessary, Booth," she brushed his cheek before stretching up to kiss him lightly. "But there is something else that I'd like. Though, I fear that it may seem almost as irrational as my unsubstantiated suspicion that you would have gone back to Hannah…" Her eyes dropped in slight embarrassment, waiting to see if he was interested in learning of her request.

He smiled at her shyness, "What is it, Bones? What can I do for you?"

"Would you…" she swallowed, "read one of my letters?" Her eyes met his in question.

His smile gave his answer before he could even speak. "Absolutely, Bones. You never have to ask if I want to… I _always_ want to. And that's not irrational at all, babe…" He bent his head and kissed her gently.

Smiling in relief, she raised her eyebrows, "it's not?"

His answer was a simple shake of his head and he loosened his hold on her as she reached into the bedside drawer. He chuckled when she pulled out an envelope. "What do you do, Bones, plant the letters at various convenient places so you can just grab them when we're done having sex?" He laughed playfully as he accepted her outstretched offer.

"No," answered in an equally playful defiance. "I never replaced the last letter in my messenger bag after I gave it to you…So, I still have them in here. But if you don't like that I had it handy, you don't have to take it. I'll just save it for some other time…" She tried to take it back, but he held it at arm's length, know she wouldn't be able to reach it, chuckling as she scrambled over his chest to retrieve it.

"Nu-uh…. You gave it to me, Bones. You can't take it back. That would make you an Indian Giver."

She raised her eyes in question, "why does taking it back make me an Indian Giver? I don't know what that means…. It sounds very non-politically-correct…" She pouted playfully, but rested her head on his shoulder, settling in comfortably with a smile.

He shrugged, "that's just what it's called… I don't know why it's so… but that's what we always said as kids." He opened the letter and paused, looking down at her. "You still want me to read it, right?"

She silently nodded and wrapped her arm around his waist. "I'd rather the last letter in your mind be mine…not hers."

Smiling, he opened the envelope and proceeded to do as she asked without question.

_Booth, _

_It's been 14 days since we said goodbye. 14 days since I felt your hand in mine. _

_I missed the courier yesterday. You have no idea how sorry I am about that. But the reason I missed the courier was quite exciting. I am struggling with the guilt I feel for not mailing your letters mixed with the euphoric sensation of our finds. I hope you will forgive me. Please? _

_Let me explain:_

_Yesterday, I should have been back to my tent by 2 pm, because our shift change was set for 1 pm. However, at approximately 12:23, one of the interns working under my direction, unearthed a partial skeleton. Everyone involved with the dig was immediately gathered around our little grid, vying for the opportunity to catch a glimpse of the monumental find. Until now, we've found nothing but beads, metals, pottery shards and ornamental sea shells. But this was, in an understatement, invigorating. _

_After closely examining the bones in situ, I determined that the skeletal remains were not as ancient as we would have hoped; not the link we were here searching for. HOWEVER, there was something much more exciting about this find! The markers, deteriorated though they are, indicate a mixed race individual. One with European-influenced features. And it's old. Thousands of years old, Booth. We are awaiting a more accurate date to come back from the lab team, and I will continue to work on the skeleton in a digital format once everything is scanned into the computer system. This will limit the amount of handling of the brittle remains while still allowing me an in-depth study of her structure. Yes, it is a woman. _

_The computer systems here are not nearly as efficient as those that I am accustomed to using at the Jeffersonian and if I had known about the inferior equipment with which I would be faced, I would have insisted on upgrades. But as it were, I was not advised as such until we reached our destination. Nevertheless, I have to wait until the x-ray techs have scanned complete 360-degree images of each bone before I can conduct further investigation. _

_My preliminary findings indicate that she was buried with some care, suggesting she had a family or community that cared for her. She was not interred with any artifacts that have yet been uncovered, further suggesting a lack of wealth. Beyond that, I have no further information for you. _

_Anyway, by the time I reached camp, with the rest of the team, it was well past 4:00 and we had all missed the courier. I am truly sorry, Booth. But I thought of you all afternoon, wishing you were standing here with me, like you would at a crime scene, asking my opinions and thoughts. While I silently studied the body as we slowly uncovered her, I heard you in my mind. (Do you think I am going crazy? Am I becoming delusional in my imagination?)_

_I am extremely tired today and I am going to wrap this letter up rather quickly. Not because I don't want to write to you, but because I want to go take a shower then crawl into my bunk. I thought about skipping dinner tonight, but then I remembered that you made me promise to not skip meals. So I ate a small meal, but plenty to stave off any hunger rumblings that might intrude upon my slumber. _

_How is the temperature in your location? I would imagine it is much warmer than it is here. And dryer, I am certain. It's currently raining outside, but nothing torrential, just enough to make it muddy and slippery. I have missed these kinds of days, being on digs and getting muddy and getting lost in my work…Not that I would trade it for the work that you and I do…but I have rediscovered my passion for anthropology these past few days. _

_Be well. Good night, Booth. _

_Always yours, _

_Bones_

_PS I don't know why I just wrote "yours" after "always", but I thought it would look unprofessional to scratch it out, and I haven't the energy to rewrite the letter from the beginning. You know that I do not agree with the prospect of being possessed by anyone, so I hope that you understand that I am only metaphorically "yours" because you are the only one who calls me Bones. (Well, you and Parker.) At any rate, this is how I rationalize my exhausted closing. _

Closing the letter, Booth looked down at his beautiful partner as her head rested on his shoulder. Her eyes were closed and he knew she was sleeping – exhausted from her lack of sleep these past few nights while she worked through both their cases and her own research, mixed with the stress of finding his ex-girlfriend's final plea to stay together, further combined with the intense love they made had caught up to her. He kissed her forehead, mumbling against her skin his love, and pulled the blanket up to protect her from the cooling afternoon air. Booth then closed his eyes to join his fiancée in a lazy afternoon of slumber.

**Postscript A/N**

**So, I know this was long, and technically it contained 2 letters, but only one was from Brennan, so I HAD to keep writing. And I couldn't make it smutless, because they had a fight, and all good B&B fights need some good smut to wrap up the night. :) I hope you enjoyed, even though it was of epic proportions in relation to the rest of the story so far. I look forward to hearing from you! **

**peace & love my friends,**

**~jazzy **


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N Welcome back to Letters from Maluku! Thank you all for your patience while I took that little detour that I affectionately titled "The Riotous Rhesus" and I hope you all enjoyed that little trip. ;) I'm not really happy with this chapter, but I've been sick and really just wanted to try to get myself back into the brain-set of Letters... I've had a case of bronchitis and laryngitis that has taken me for a loop, and I've had trouble writing, so I appreciate your indulgence and promise to make the next chapter a bit more exciting. **

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Bones or any of its characters... I just own this little exploration into Brennan's mind while she was in Maluku. **

**Please Review!**

She sat at the bedside, silently, futilely willing him to open his eyes.

Holding his much larger hand in hers, she caressed his calloused skin roughly, hoping that if she rubbed hard enough, it would stir him back into consciousness.

She tried to ignore the incessant beep…beep…beeping, which filled the otherwise silent background; the rhythmic alarms that kept time with the pulse she could watch throbbing against the relaxed skin of his neck, just below his ear, and in the hollow of his throat, at his supra-sternal notch.

She struggled to disregard the constant whir…whir...whirring of the ventilator, which was controlling his breathing pattern; supporting his life through its steady, unrelenting cadence; feeding the necessary oxygen into his bloodstream so that he, she dared to hope, would not leave her.

She forced herself _not_ to take notice of the perfectly timed inflation followed by the subsequent deflation of the automatic blood pressure cuff that hugged his arm tightly; the same arm she'd much rather have wrapped securely around her; the very arm that'd protected her countless times in the field and the one that held her tenderly after making passionate love all night long.

With trembling fingers, she reached up and carefully touched his face, tracing his bruised cheekbone tenderly…outlining his strong, chapped lips with the pad of her forefinger… cupping his scarred jawline in her palm as she prayed to a higher power in which she didn't believe, that she'd once again see his deep chocolate browns open and smile down at her in a way that only she ever saw.

Pulling herself shakily to her feet, she stretched up and pressed her lips to his ear in a soft kiss. Her ribs ached where she'd been assaulted, but she was subconsciously thankful for the discomfort, because it meant she was awake enough to feel the pain, and she planned to use that pain to keep her alert until her partner opened his eyes.

"I love you," she whispered against the shell of his ear, "please come back to me…" She choked back a sob and pressed another kiss to his temple, noticing for the first time just how small his ear was, when compared to the rest of his head. She raked her fingers through the short hair at his temple and dragged them to the back of his head, where she massaged his scalp carefully. "The nurse said you can hear me…" she spoke softly against his cheek while she cradled the other side of his head with her bandaged hand. "I don't know if you can or not… but I'll stay with you, and talk until you open your eyes…There's nowhere else I'd rather be, anyway." She kissed him again and retook her seat at his side.

"You heard me when you were in the coma following your brain surgery… But this is different…" She swallowed thickly and swatted angrily at her the tears that fell without permission. "Back then, you were in a drug-induced coma… But this time…" she gulped at the reality of their situation. "This time… it's not your allergy to anesthesia that's keeping you from me…" She finally ignored the tears that were falling and she let them trail rivers down her cheeks. "So much blood, Booth…You lost so much blood…"

She carefully peeled back his hospital gown and looked at the gauze-covered wound on his upper chest, swallowing the lump in her throat, she thought back over the event that brought them to the place where they currently found themselves.

It was supposed to be routine… It was just a routine stake-out… But it had all gone wrong…So horribly wrong… And now her partner – her professional partner _and more importantly,_ her life partner – was lying in the hospital, fighting for his life after the gaping bullet wound in his chest was freshly operated on and stitched closed.

The bullet wound should have been hers, and she would have gladly swapped locations with him, taking the hit in his place...But as always, he'd protected her, stepping between the gunman and her position, as the perp pulled the trigger. Her vision became blurred with tears once again.

"Sweetie?" The soft voice interrupted her thoughts as Angela entered the tiny hospital room, carrying a duffel bag in one hand and a to-go bag from the diner in her other. "Bren, how is he?"

Never taking her eyes from her partner, she answered her friend. "He's cold… I keep adding blankets, but he's still cold, Ange…" She held his hand between hers, briskly rubbing them in hopes that the friction would provide some heat, some comfort, for the only man she'd ever loved.

Angela recognized that her friend was in shock and slowly moved towards her, placing the duffel on the floor against the wall and bringing the white paper lunch bag to the table beside the bed. "Brennan, sweetie, have you eaten?" She hoped that in distracting her friend, she might interject some normalcy – some stability – into an otherwise sensitive situation.

Brennan simply shook her head while watching her partner. "I'm not hungry."

"Bren, you need to eat. Booth would want you to eat…You need to keep up your strength."

"Booth needs me to be here…right here…" She pulled her seat closer to the bed, "I can't go out."

"I'm not asking you to _go out_ to eat, Sweetie; I know you better than that… I _brought_ you something." Angela motioned to the bag on the table. She pressed a kiss to the top of her friend's head, knowing that that she would not get much conversation from the Anthropologist. "Tell him we all love him when he wakes up, Bren. And call me if you need anything." She brushed her fingers through her friend's auburn locks as she spoke. "Make sure you eat something…I packed you a change of clothes in there," she motioned to the duffel, "and your laptop and messenger bag…" Angela retreated to the door. "We all love you, too, Bren… And while you may not believe in it, we're all praying for you, too."

She heard Angela's words, but didn't acknowledge them; she simply remained focused on her partner, and his unmoving, unflinching body. Once she knew they were alone again, Brennan leaned forward and rested her cheek against his firm shoulder, pulling his blanket up higher, trying to help his body capture the comforting heat that was always present, but which was disturbingly absent. "You're always the warm one, Booth…You're the warm one and I'm the cold one…I depend on you when I'm chilly, when I need to be warmed… But today…today I can't feel your heat…"

Once again, she tried to ignore the beep…beep…beeping….

And the whir…whir…whirring…

And the inflations and deflations...

Raising her blue eyes, she studied his chiseled, distinct profile. She looked at his stubble-covered cheeks, noticing flecks of gray amidst his naturally dark whiskers. She followed the line of his nose, noting the unmistakable evidence of an un-set broken bridge from years ago, wishing she'd known him back then – she would have ensured that his injury was attended to when it was freshly broken. But then, if she'd been there _back then _for that, there's no telling if they'd be a couple _now_; and even if it was just whimsy, she didn't dare imagine anything that would alter the love they currently shared. He'd worked hard to metaphorically beat down her walls…he'd broken laws to protect her throughout their career… he killed the man who would have killed her after she'd been kidnapped… Seeley J. Booth loved her like no man had ever done before…

"Do you want me to talk to you, Booth? Do you want me to read to you?" She slowly sat up and reached for the newspaper that rested at his bedside. Flipping through until she found an article she thought he'd find interesting, she paused in the sports section. She read scores, recaps and headlines, wondering if he was hearing anything at all. She turned to the entertainment section, letting him know which movies were playing and which actors were starring. Feeling an unsettling depression in the pit of her stomach, she lowered the paper to her lap and looked at her still-sleeping partner. "Please wake up, Booth… The doctors said the operation was successful, and there's no reason for you to still be unconscious… Unless you don't _want_ to wake up… but I find that hard to imagine…"

She turned her head and looked at the duffel bag that Angela had dropped off. "I know you want to wake up, Booth…I _know_ you do…" She reached for the shoulder strap of the bag and pulled it to her, sliding it across the checker-patterned linoleum. "Maybe you just need a little help...or time...But I know that you don't _want_ to leave me..."

Reaching into the bag, she pulled out her messenger bag and opened the flap before she looked back to the pale shell of her partner, missing the glow of his beautiful olive pigment that she'd always admired. "I know what you'd like to hear, Booth…" She reached up and brushed the shirt hair at his temple and reached back into her bag, pulling out a stack of envelopes tied together with a thin leather strap. "You're overdue, Booth…it's been a few weeks…"

The pulled the top letter off the pile and slid her finger beneath the flap, breaking the seal. Taking a sip of water, she took a deep, shaky breath. "I hope you enjoy…"

"_Day 21_

_Dear Booth, _

_I know it's been a week since I wrote my last letter. It's not that I haven't wanted to, but I have been extremely busy. We have had no word as to when the next courier will be coming by. The only actual road to civilization has been washed out. We had a terrible storm about 5 days ago. We lost a couple of our community tents and we are on limited food supply per person, until our ability to receive another shipment of perishables is restored. We are mainly eating our canned and dehydrated rations – they are much like your military MRE's. I don't mind the food options, but then again, I don't eat as much as some others do. _

_I promise, though, that I will not become a victim of malnutrition. _

_We've had to re-work much of our dig site since the rain affected good portion of our processed dirt, washing it back into the holes out of which it originally came. This is not something with which I am unfamiliar; in fact, I believe that something like this has happened on almost each of my digs, at one point or another. The new-comers, however, (Daisy included) could be heard moaning and whining all day, every day, since the down-pour. _

_I had to reprimand one intern about the usage of my nickname. Apparently, Ms. Wick took it upon herself to reveal to the other interns, that you call me 'Bones'. I think it was her way of trying to show that she knew me better than anyone else, since she is my intern. Anthropologically speaking, it is not uncommon for individuals to attempt to create a hierarchy in and amongst themselves by putting on displays of advanced knowledge or skills to their peers. I think this was what Daisy was attempting to do. However, I did not approve of her actions, and I told her so afterwards. I think I may have frightened her a bit…but frankly I don't care. _

_I was working at re-digging one of our grids and a young man, an arrogant intern, (a cocky-bastard, I imagine you would call him), stood above me, staring down while I worked. Feeling someone watching me, I stopped digging and turned to look up at him. He had his hands on his hips and was wearing a 'smart-ass' smirk (I can imagine your voice making that remark), and he spoke. "So, Bones, tell me…Are you romantically involved with any…" But I didn't let him finish his question. I pulled myself out of the hole so quickly that he stumbled backwards, his eyes wide with surprise. I could feel my blood pressure rise; in fact, I could hear the blood pumping through my own ears. "What did you call me?" I clenched my jaw and fisted my hands at my sides. "What the hell did you just call me?" I asked him again when he didn't reply. _

_He stuttered and mumbled "Well, that's your nickname, isn't it? That's what I was told…That's what Daisy…"_

_I pushed my finger into his chest, (hard!) and told him that he was to call me Doctor Brennan. I told him that only two people were allowed to call me Bones and he was far from having the permission to call me anything other than my proper title. Then I told him that if he tried anything like that again, I would see to it that he was on the next truck out of camp, and if that was going to be delayed, that I would arrange for a helicopter to come collect him and his belongings and that he would never work on another international dig again, as long as I was top in my field. _

_He scurried off to the other interns without another word and I haven't heard from nor seen him since that afternoon. When he was escaping my anger, I caught up with Ms. Wick and told her basically the same thing…if she pulled another stunt like that, I would see to it that she would never be invited on another dig, I would fire her as my Jeffersonian intern and I would guarantee her immediate return to DC, then bill her for the travel expenses. _

_She hasn't spoken to me since, either. But that's OK. I think that my time in DC has softened me, and I have to reestablish my previous professional persona when on a dig. I can't let interns think they are my equals. There is a reason that I am the overseeing expert on staff and they are not. _

_I have been very busy since the wash-out, trying to bring our dig-status back up to par, as it was before the rains came. _

_I still think of you every day, Booth. You're the first one I think of in the mornings and you're the last one I think of before I fall asleep. I still hope you are healthy and safe and I wonder if you think about me…? Perhaps I am spending too much time thinking, and the interns sense my weakness… I have to analyze this new problem I am facing. I think I will start to rebuild some of those professional (metaphorical) walls that you're always talking about. _

_But I am not sure I remember how. _

_No matter what, however, I won't rebuild the walls against you, Booth. I just want you to know that. I realize now, perhaps too late – but hopefully not, that I could never rebuild my walls against you. _

_Booth, I am extremely tired and am going to go to sleep. It's approximately 2:00 am and I have another big day tomorrow. We should be able to continue where we left off. _

_Oh (!) I have news from the woman's remains that we found, which I told you about in my last letter, but that will have to wait until I write again. I simply can't go into it tonight. _

_Always, _

_Bones_

_Yes, I am still Always "yours", but not really. Do you know what I mean? _

_Thank you for understanding me. Goodnight Booth. I miss you."_

She folded the letter again, carefully pushing it back into the envelope out of which she'd taken it, and moved it to the bottom of the pile. She looked up at her partner and reached for his hand, threading her much thinner fingers between his thicker ones then brought them to her lips. "You've always understood me, Booth… And I'll be right here when you wake up…Please don't make me wait too long."

She lowered her head to his shoulder once again, nuzzling into his neck as she let a sigh escape her lips. "Good night, Booth. I love you." Her breath skipped across his skin as she dozed off, resting against his silent form, not feeling his hand tightening around hers.

**Postscript A/N Thank you for taking time to read this short chapter! I hope you were not too disappointed. Please take a moment and let me know your thoughts! :) **

**peace & love my friends, **

**~jazzy**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N Welcome back! Thank you so much for the overwhelmingly positive response to this story, you all blow me away with your kindness. Thank you for your patience while I completed this chapter. I've been kind of busy with other stuff in real life as well as another project on FF. **

**In response to a question I received, I wanted to address it in the open, to clear up any questions that may be lingering out there with anyone else. This story keeps in canon with **_**my**_** multi-chapter fic 'Can You Save Her, Agent Booth,' NOT with the show we all know and love. So, what you read in here is in direct relation to my story. **

**In case anyone is interested in the other project I referenced above - I just recently posted the first chapter to my new multi-chapter fic, and the continuation of CYSHAB, called 'Death, Plus One.' So, if you're reading this, I assume you read CYSHAB, and perhaps you'd like to follow our favorite team on an adventure… Please check it out! **

**Disclaimer: Bones is not mine, nor are the characters. However, this story and these letters are ALL mine. **

_It's so dark… why is it so dark? _

_And cold… I'm never cold… _

_I generally have an unusually high internal temperature… I radiate heat. Always. Much to my partner's delight…_

_So much so that since Bones & I started sharing a bed, Little-miss-perpetually-frigid-toes-and-phalanges always gravitates over to my side of the bed, even on hot and humid nights… But that's a small price to pay to have the privilege of sleeping at her side every night. _

_I love sleeping with my partner…_

_Not just because of the fan-fucking-tastic sex, because that's definitely as awesome perk, but more importantly, I love sleeping with my partner because I love her so much… And the fact that she loves me back… That just might be the best part... She's fucking awesome… _

_Speaking of my Awesome Bones…. She's somewhere close to me, I can smell her… Yup…I can smell her… She uses that fancy lavender and French vanilla body gel and lotion combination. By themselves, the scents don't do much for me, but lather 'em onto Bones' body and Aw, man-alive… it quickly became one of my favorite scents the first time I sniffed the air as she passed. I love the way she smells… Bones tells me that I'm actually attracted to her individual chemical pheromones, and that I would be just as enthralled by her scent even if she used a different flavor gel (and she'd yell at me for calling it a 'flavor', but that's how I think of those things…). She's probably right about the pheromone-things, but all I know is that I love to sniff at that spot where her neck meets her shoulder, or that spot right in the middle of her shoulder blades, or behind her knees, or (one of my favorite places…) her cleavage…or dare-I-think-about-it her tummy… _

_Hell, I just love the smell (and taste!) of my partner…. _

_But I digress… She's close-by, but I don't know where she is… Why the hell is it so dark, why can't I see anything? _

"Bones?" _My voice sounds wrong_… "Bones, where are you? Where am _**I**_?"

_She's not answering me…can she hear me? _

_Bones told me once that she liked my voice…she said I had a calming effect on her. I never thought I had a particularly enticing voice…But hell, she's the genius. And if she says I do, then I must. _

_Hey…I can't smile…What the hell is wrong with my mouth_? _And why can't I think straight?_

"Somebody turn a light on in here, huh!?" _Dammit, I can't yell… What the __**fuck**__ is going on?_

"What? What, Bones? I can't quite hear you…" _I can hear the rich alto timbre of her voice, but I can't understand what she's saying…I'm so confused…_

Brennan sat at the bedside of her partner, holding his hand and watching him intensely. She could see some eye movement from behind his closed lids.

"Booth?" She spoke relatively quiet, but loud enough that she knew he could hear her. "Booth? You need to wake up now. You've been asleep long enough…Open your eyes…" She held his hand and fought back tears when she squeezed but felt no response from the man she loved. "You've been asleep long enough…it's time to wake up…" Her voice died down as the words struggled to be heard. "I miss you, Booth…"

_I can't understand what she's saying…but I can hear her talking to me; that's her voice..._

"Bones?" _Why is it so dark?_ "Bones? Answer me, dammit!"

B/B/B/B

"Dear Booth,

"Good evening. (Or afternoon, or morning… whichever the case may be when you read this.)

For me, it's evening. It is currently 7:42 pm. It's been 23 days since we parted at the airport.

"How are you? Are you keeping safe and eating healthy meals? You know, while you are in the desert, you need to stay hydrated. One of the main problems faced by those employed in arid locations is the tendency to not drink enough. I know you; you get wrapped up in your tasks and sometimes forget to take in as much water as you expel through your pores as you perspire. Please be sure you are drinking enough. And you should drink WATER, Booth. I know you like your ridiculously-sweet soda products and Gatorade after working out at home, so I assume you would crave the same beverages there. But there is ample scientifically-supported evidence indicating that neither of those choices offers you what you need when you are in extremely hot and sweaty situations. Please drink water. For me?

"Well, I promised to tell you about the skeleton we unearthed. She was of European decent, but, unlike what I originally thought, it appears she was of mixed race; that means that the European travelers passing through this territory on their trade-routes would have been sexually active with the local inhabitants. The skeleton was only partial, but the parts we found allowed us to learn a lot about how she lived.

"Evidence leads me to believe her death would have occurred approximately between her 16th and 22nd birthday. Yet, she had indications of advanced arthritis and osteoporosis. The locations on her bones of the evidence show that she labored hard and ate very modestly. Meaning she was worked to near exhaustion with very little nourishment. I don't dare say she was a servant or slave, because history shows no proof that the ancient inhabitants kept slaves, but if this were an African American skeleton in the southern United States, I would feel comfortable drawing such a conclusion, even without a complete analysis of evidence. You know I don't believe in gut instinct, but I feel somewhat sad about this young girl; somewhere in the back of my mind, I think she was, in fact, a mistreated servant.

"Anthropologically speaking, history tells us that many societies would outcast individuals born of mixed races. Perhaps that was the case here? Perhaps her village, community or family unfairly punished her for being born of parents from different walks of life. Yet, when she died, someone cared enough to lay her in the ground carefully. Her hands were folded upon her breast as if she was in a peaceful slumber and her feet were crossed at the ankles. This is indicative of a careful internment, not a simple dump of a body after it's passed.

"Initially we believed she was not interred with any sort of artifacts, however, a tiny metal bead was found calcified to her sternum. It may have been a necklace of sorts or perhaps a tiny treasure that was special to her in life or to the person who cared enough to bury her.

"An examination of her pelvic cavity, or what was left of it, indicates that she gave birth. It would not be surprising, if by the age of 16 she had given birth multiple times. However, if she was an ostracized member of the community, it leaves me to wonder with what kind of mate she was paired. It _is_ possible that there were other members, near her age, who were also of mixed race. If her mother was a local and her father was a European explorer, (which is likely the way it would have gone, as the mother would have stayed behind to give birth to her child at her home,) then it would not be surprising if more than one indigenous woman was impregnated by men from the same ship's crew, or perhaps by the same man himself. So it is entirely plausible that the woman was paired with another mixed member of the community.

"So many questions, though, are left unanswered, as we have yet to unearth any other remnants or remains. In fact, I feel that we now have more questions than we did before we started.

"We are going to move a portion of our base camp 3 kilometers to the west, starting tomorrow. We have received indication that there is a good chance for additional discoveries in that region. I will be part of the group making the move. There will be 3 supervisors, myself included, and 5 interns. That will leave 3 supervisors and 7 interns here at the original base camp. I am quite looking forward to the prospect of exploring uncharted grids. I have truly regained my passion for historical anthropology, Booth.

"I am sad to say that I don't miss crime solving the way I thought I would… I have rediscovered the excitement involved with uncovering items that haven't been held by human hands, or viewed by a critical eye for thousands of years. But, I don't want you to think that I don't miss working with you. I miss you every day. And Angela and Hodgins and Cam. I even miss Sweets…a little…

"But Booth, I miss you terribly if I am to be honest. I am still confused about the feelings I am experiencing. Sometimes my chest hurts when I think of you, but then other times I just sit and smile when I think about the diner or the park or even racing to the coffee cart. Speaking of coffee…. What I wouldn't do for a good cup of coffee… our brew leaves a lot to be desired, but at least it provides the necessary caffeine to get me going in the morning, but I miss the fresh brew at the cart and the sweet black cups of coffee we get at the diner.

"This letter has been quite long, I am sorry if it was boring for you to hear about our discovery, my intention was to "paint a picture" of what we found.

"Booth, what is your email address? I would like to send you emails if I could. Our connections are sparse on a good day, but when I do manage to get online, I would like to send you a note.

"I had a dream again last night. You were giving me one of your 'guy' hugs. I have to tell you, I really miss your hugs… But can _you_ tell _me_ something? Are they really guy-hugs, or do they mean something more? Angela told me once that you used that as an excuse to hug me…and I never asked you about it because I found that I quite like your hugs. I feared that if I questioned you, you might stop hugging me altogether… And I don't want that to happen…you always seem to know what I need one. When I woke up from my dream I felt a pang in my chest, and I found myself longing to feel your arms wrapped around my shoulders. Do those hugs mean more to you than just 'guy' hugs? I am very confused, Booth.

"I have to go shower and get to bed, I have a big day tomorrow.

"Thinking of you every sinlge day, Booth.

"Always yours, Bones"

B/B/B/B

Brennan sighed and slowly folded the letter, replacing it into the envelope before she blindly reached for her partner's hand, her eyes still lowered to the pile of envelopes sitting on her lap. She wrapped her fingers around the chilled hand that was normally so warm, and it made her heart ache.

Suddenly, her hand was being engulfed by Booth's much larger one as he squeezed. Her eyes widened as she jerked her head upright, and she met his sleepy, dark brown eyes and lazy smile.

"Booth…" she stood from her chair, letting the pile of letters fall to the floor in a scattering of sealed and unsealed envelopes. She leaned towards him, palming his face with her free hand. "Booth…" all she could do was breathe his name as she looked into his eyes.

"They…" he coughed, his throat was terribly dry.

"Don't try to talk, Booth. Here," she slipped a chip of ice between his lips after fishing it out from her iced tea. "You've been asleep for 6 days, Booth…Your throat is going to be dry…don't talk yet."

He shook his head slowly, moving the ice around his mouth with his tongue while he closed his eyes momentarily. Once he swallowed it, Booth opened his eyes again, meeting the beautiful blue oceans he loved so much.

"They always meant more, Bones," he managed to croak out weakly.

She wrinkled her forehead in confusion. "What meant more, Booth?"

He grinned softly, realizing she had already put it out of her mind. "The hugs…they were _always_ more…Bones…" Booth's eyes drifted closed once more as he watched pools form on her lower lids, but he was unable to fight the sleep threatening to take over once again.

Fighting back the tears, Brennan rubbed her fingers through his hair while squeezing his fingers again. "Booth… wake up, Booth. Don't leave me again…"

He pried his eyelids open, an action that was taking great effort on his part. "I'm not goin' anywhere, baby…" his words were slurred and his voice gravelly. "I love you too much to leave…"

She laughed and cried simultaneously, thankful to whatever force in the universe brought him back from his inexplicable slumber. "Do you know where you are?"

He nodded slowly, "Hospital."

"Do you know why?"

Again he nodded slowly, a slight crinkle marring his forehead. "Shot. Twice I think…" He was drifting off to sleep once more, unable to win the fight. "Don't cry, Bones… You're safe; that's all that matters."

And with that, his features went slack and his grip on her hand loosened.

Brennan raised his fingers to her lips and kissed each one in turn. "I love you, too, Booth." She whispered as she sat back down, wincing at the pain her broken ribs had caused when she bent over her lover. Sliding forward in her seat, she rested her head next to his now-still hand and closed her eyes to rest, exhausted from staying awake, waiting for him to open his eyes.

And now that he had done so, she could sleep.

_The hugs….they always meant more… _

**Postscript A/N**

****Whew** Booth woke up! Yay! **

**And who would have doubted that those random hugs weren't more!? **

**I want to say something about this. I actually wrote the letter contained herein back in December… I did not steal the idea of a mixed race skeleton being discovered from the episode that aired this year. I have no proof of that, only my word, but I felt it was important to say, because I don't want anyone thinking that I steal ideas. So there you have it…**

**I hope you enjoyed and I would love to hear from you! Please leave me a review! My Muse thanks you in advance. ;)**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N Hello! I bet you all thought I abandoned this story, huh? Well, I assure you I did not. I have been focusing heavily on my CYSHAB sequel 'Death, Plus One,' but I have not forgotten about Brennan's letters. **

**I appreciate you finding this story again, and hope you still like this little collection of related One Shots that spun off separately from CYSHAB. Please review!**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own anything, honest… Just this story.**

"_Bones, I told you it was going to be a boring night, you could have just stayed home." Booth eyed his partner from the corner of his eye after hearing her sigh for the fifth time in eight minutes. _

"_Booth, I would only be worried if I stayed home, knowing you'd be on this stake-out by yourself." She looked out her passenger window at the dilapidated neighborhood surrounding the equally-dilapidated uncover truck in which they currently sat. "I don't like it when you have to do these things by yourself."_

"_Babe, tonight is just a watch-and-learn stake-out; like I said earlier, nothing is going to happen – I am here to simply collect data and report it back to higher-ups." _

"_If you're the 'Head' of Major Crimes, why do you have to be the one collecting the data? Why can't you send one of your Juniors out to do this job?" _

"_Bones, we've been over this dozens of times before. Juniors collect data on lower-profile jobs – much lower. This case? This is major. Huge. Delgado is a massive player in the Colombian Mafia movements of illegal gold mining. Hell, unlawful mining has become more lucrative than coca harvesting or cocaine running. Thousands and thousands of people have been displaced from their homes, abused, trafficked, or worse, murdered, simply because Delgado and his cronies want to pull the precious metal from the ground. And what do they do with it? They bring it up here and sell it – they clean the blood from their hands by passing it off as legitimately obtained material." Booth looked out at the darkened street then turned back to his partner. "Kids – kids like Parker – are taken from their families – from families who love them and only want the best for them – and assholes like Delgado turn them into killing machines – into drug pushers – and mules." He reached for Brennan's hand; he knew she understood the depths of cruelty witnessed in other countries – she had first-hand experience, in fact. "At any rate, Bones, this is not something for a Junior Agent to be assigned to work… That's why I'm here, baby." _

"_I know, Booth. I just – I hate that you have to do these types of jobs in addition to the one you do every day, where I'm your partner…" She dropped her head back against the tattered headrest and looked at him. "I guess I'm being a little selfish -" _

_Her words were cut off by an explosion in the building behind their shadowed parking space; the building where Charlie was stationed with a team of FBI agents, just in case things went sideways for Booth out on the street. _

_Booth's earpiece crackled with Charlie's voice, backed by what Booth could only assume was gunfire. "Booth get outta there! Delgado's men are on to us!"_

_As Booth reached for the ignition, the back window of the truck shattered, a million pieces of safety glass raining down around the partners. He reached over and grabbed Brennan's shoulders, pushing her down below the window line and readied to throw the truck in gear. Before he was able to shift into 'Drive,' the passenger door window exploded, pierced by two bullets, his door was yanked open and a pair of hands reached in, yanking him from his seat. _

"_Booth!" Brennan tried to grab her partner as he was snatched from the truck cab unexpectedly, but suddenly felt herself being pulled from her crouched position partway between the seat and the floorboard. _

_When Booth saw the man reaching for his girlfriend, he struggled, now against four hands rather than just two, all of which were dragging him further from her grasp. "Take your fucking hands off her, you son of a bitch!" He screamed at the short, but stocky man who had a firm grasp on Brennan's biceps as he tugged her from the confines of the truck cab. _

"_Shut up, **pig**!" One of the men who was manhandling Booth pistol-whipped the agent in the back of the head. "You are in no position to be making demands, bastardo…" His thick Colombian accent growled in Booth's ear as the two men shoved him to the ground, face first. _

_Booth felt the larger guy, one he would later learn was named Roberto, press his knee into the middle of Booth's spine as he pulled the agent's arms back into a tight hold. The gunman pressed the barrel of his gun against the back of Booth's skull until the agent turned so his cheek was pressed against the warm asphalt of the Valdez Road, rather than his forehead, at which point, the gun was repositioned against his temple. _

_He had turned just in time to see Brennan's captor dragging her around from behind the truck, where he forcefully threw her body against the back quarter of the truck bed; Booth would later learn that was the impact that fractured three of his lover's ribs. The agent could feel his blood boiling at the harsh treatment of Brennan. "I said to leave her the hell alone, you motherfucker!" _

_The gun was pressed harder against Booth's temple, "And I told you, __**amigo**__, to shut the fuck up!" His words were spat and Booth could smell the stale liquor on the man's repulsive breath. "We don't like being spied on by __**Pigs**__. I am especially on-edge, so you should heed my warning, Officer, and maybe we'll ask Avilla to go a little bit easier on your pretty little partner over there." _

"_Enough!" A booming voice joined the trio of men holding the partners, but Booth couldn't turn his head to see whose voice it was. _

_Brennan chose that moment to scream at the men holding her boyfriend to the ground. "Get off of him!" She had more to say, but her words were halted by a swift blow to the side of her head as Avilla back-handed her, the momentum forcing the other side of her face to smash against the truck. _

"_It's OK, Bones. Just don't say anything…Just…stop." Booth's focus was completely on his partner; and he feared not for himself, but for what they planned to do to her. _

"_I said __**enough**__!" The man stepped into Booth's view, cutting off his line of vision to Brennan, and squatted down to glare at Booth. "You have messed with the wrong man, __Señor__ Officer…" Delgado's right-hand-man, Hector Rivas, clenched his jaw as he growled at Booth. "You and your friends over there in the abandoned building are not as sneaky as you think… And you will pay for that." He spat in Booth's face and pushed himself back to his feet, turning to Avilla. _

"_Mata a la perra, pero asegurate que el este mirando... Quiero que sepa que el fallo en salvarla. Diviertete con ella si lo deseas. Pero siempre y cuando Booth lo vea todo…. Ese sera su castigo. Luego has lo que quieras con el." _

_Booth didn't miss the way Rivas grunted the words – pure cruelty dripping in every syllable, and without regard to the ramifications that went along with assaulting a law enforcement officer. Seeley Booth was not fluent in Spanish, but he recognized enough to know that his partner's life was in immediate grave danger. He watched as Avilla listened to Rivas' order, and then turned back to Brennan with a snarly smile. He reached over and grabbed one of her breasts roughly. _

"_You hear that, se__ñ__orita? I get to have a little fun with you before I kill you in front of your pathetic little boyfriend." He laughed when Brennan tried to turn away and reached down, grabbing her crotch with one hand while he wrapped his other hand around her throat, his short, pudgy fingers squeezing as he leaned close to her lips. _

_Feeling a sudden flood of strength and power, Booth dislodged his hands from Roberto, who was still holding them behind his back while kneeling on the center of Booth's spine. The Special Agent swung his arm up, commandeering the glock from the gunman standing over his head, pulling him down to the ground. He used the momentum of the falling man to simultaneously push upwards with his other arm, throwing the Roberto off his back, and when the gunman hit the ground, Booth shot him in the kneecaps. When Roberto tried to attack Booth from behind, the Agent did a reverse head-butt, catching Roberto squarely in the nose with the back of his skull, dazing the Colombian enough that he fell backwards. _

_Booth raised the gun and trained his sight on Avilla. "Get the fuck away from her, bastardo. __**Now**__!" He waved the gun, letting his eyes dart over to where Rivas was quietly observing the whole charade. "Tell your man to back off Rivas! You'll never get away with this – you'll never get away with killing us, and you know it." He darted his eyes back and forth between Avilla and Rivas, only briefly catching sight of the blood dripping down the side of his partner's face. _

"_We may not get away with it – but you will be dead… So you will never know…" _

"_We don't need any more bloodshed… Tell your guy to release my partner and tell your other buddy over here to back the hell off…" He jerked his head towards Roberto when he felt the still-slightly-stunned man closing in behind him. _

_There was movement from across the street and Booth could tell that Charlie and at least part of his team had gotten out of the demolished building alive, and they were moving towards Booth's location with their guns drawn. __Everything was happening so fast that Booth's instincts set him into motion before his logic ever kicked in. When Avilla's attention had been drawn to the incoming activity, Booth used that opportunity to take control of their situation. He closed the distance between himself and his partner, aiming at Avilla as he moved. "Bones, get down!" He yelled as she slumped to the ground, blood still running down the side of her face, dripping down and disappearing into the material of her black t-shirt; her arms cradled her torso as she slid down the side of the truck. As soon as she was safely away from Avilla, Booth squeezed the trigger, landing a shot that put Avilla to the ground instantly. He turned just in time to see Rivas pull his gun and aim it at Brennan, hatred filling the South American's eyes._

_Lunging between Rivas and his fiancée, Booth kept his back to Brennan and raised his arm just as Rivas' first bullet struck his chest. Booth fired as he stumbled backwards, certain that Rivas had been hit with his bullet, but forgetting about Roberto as the burly man aimed his own pistol. _

"_NOOO!" Brennan screamed when she caught Roberto's movement, and Booth swept his arm back, tucking his girl safely behind him as two more shots rang out simultaneously. _

_One shot, fired from behind Brennan and Booth, they would later find out came from Charlie's weapon, was a clean shot into Roberto's chest. But the Colombian had already discharge his handgun, pumping a second round into Booth's upper chest, the momentum from which threw the Agent back against his partner and Charlie, as Booth's colleague rushed forward to help the partners. _

_After that…everything went dark for Booth. The last thing he saw was Brennan's panicked eyes staring down at him, tears falling freely as she cried for her lover. And Booth could remember thinking how bright and beautiful her blues were…and how much he was going to miss looking into them…_

_B/B/B/B_

Jerking himself awake, Booth sat upright in bed, letting the soft sheet pool down at his naked waist. Panic swept over him and he turned to find his partner, lying next to him, still sleeping soundly with her back to him. The thin lines of moonlight shining through the blinds shed enough light on her pale skin for him to be able to see her clearly.

_We fell asleep spooning…I was wrapped around her_, Booth thought, as the fog of his nightmare cleared. _We made love… repeatedly…_ It was the first time since their stake-out had gone wrong, leaving them both battered and beaten, that the lovers were both well enough to properly make love. Sure, they had pleasured each other as often as possible after Booth's discharge from the hospital, but between Brennan's fractured ribs and Booth's surgery incisions, they hadn't been able to properly love each other the way they always enjoyed. And from Brennan's deep, sleepy breaths, it was obvious to Booth that she had thoroughly enjoyed their evening.

Sweeping his hand roughly across his face, he groaned at the vividness of his dream – it was like they were right back there – under the thumb of Delgado's stooges – it was so real. Feeling his heartbeat calming, Booth scooted back down beneath the sheet, snuggling up behind his girl and wrapping his arm around her waist to pull her back against his chest. He shifted carefully so his thighs followed the line of hers, and her bottom was tucked into the curve of his crotch, just the way he liked it when they slept in that position. Nuzzling softly through her wild tresses, Booth found the sweet skin of Brennan's neck, and he pressed a kiss against her while inhaling her scent.

The kiss is what finally pulled Brennan from her sleepy dreams and she hummed, reaching down and covering Booth's hand, leaving them both to rest on the soft curve of her belly. Finally realizing her mate was awake in his movements, Brennan opened her eyes and turned her head until she could just make out his silhouette through her peripheral vision.

"Booth? Are you OK?" Her sleepy voice was deep and throaty, but her words clear.

"I had a nightmare." He tightened his hold on her and pressed his lips against her bare shoulder. "About that night…"

Recognizing the thick emotion in Booth's voice, Brennan rolled over, first to her back, then to her right side, so she was facing Booth. He kept his arm draped around her waist and when she was finally facing him, she felt his fingers flex against the small of her back, pulling her ever closer as he shifted his left arm to scoop beneath her neck and shoulders, so he could roll to his back and take her with him.

It was a movement they did often, so well-orchestrated it was as if they were one person moving, rather than two separate bodies. Brennan settled against her fiancée's shoulder and splayed her fingers wide across his chest, caressing the masculine skin beneath her touch. Booth reached his right palm up to her cheek and tilted her head, so she was looking up at him.

"I can't put you in that kind of danger, Bones. Never again. I can't endanger you again like that… I was so close to losing you…" He swallowed thickly and bit back the tears he only ever let her see. Outwardly, Booth was a tough agent; a real no-nonsense, hard-nose, kick-ass Special Agent. But at home with his partner, whether it was his apartment or hers, he was safe to let his emotions speak for themselves. He knew that with Brennan, _His Bones_, he could say anything, and it would be held in the utmost confidence. And so, he let her see what the ordeal had done to him, emotionally. "If that bastard had shot you…if he'd…If Avilla had hurt you any more than he already did…If…" He choked back a sob.

"Shhh…Booth, I'm alright." She palmed his cheek. "I'm OK, and you're OK. And those assholes are dead. You saved us…like you always do."

He shook his head. "I put us in that danger… I placed _you_ in that danger, Baby." His eyes followed his hand as he traced the sharp curves of her cheek and jaw with a single finger, feeling the softness of her skin beneath his calloused pad. "If anything happened to you, I would have killed myself – if they didn't kill me first."

Fear at the seriousness of his confession brought Brennan up to her elbow, propping herself above his face. "Don't ever say that, Booth. Don't you dare even entertain such an asinine notion, Booth." She was serious in her reprimand, but gentle with her tone, understanding that he had been disturbed from slumber with horrible visions in a recount of their night. "You have a son; you have people here who love you; you have a religion that forbids suicide…"

"But I wouldn't have you, Bones." He pulled her down for a desperate kiss. "I wouldn't have the one person who completes me…" he muttered against her lips as he fisted her hair, pulling her in for another kiss as he rolled, so she was once again beneath his body. He moved his lips down to her jaw, then to her throat as she craned her neck, allowing him better access, like she knew he liked. His firm lips moved expertly across her sweet skin and he migrated towards her ear, nuzzling into the soft spot just behind her lobe and sucking softly, darting the tip of his tongue out occasionally to her soft lobe, tugging it into the warmth of his mouth. "Taste so fucking amazing, Bones…Goddamn perfection…" He mumbled, his breath against the wetness his mouth left behind sent shivers coursing through her body.

Without conscious thought, Brennan's body reacted to Booth's ministrations. She knew, in the frontal lobe of her brain, that he was desperate to chase the visions from his mind, therefore was engaging in heavy petting, which would ultimately lead to making love. On a deeper level, however, on the emotional level that he'd taught her so much about, she understood the sheer desire that he was battling. He wanted to consume her completely; mark her, take her, swallow her and keep her safe at all times; she understood all of that, because she often felt the need to do the same to him. There were times that Brennan was so wrapped up in needing to be close to her mate that she wanted to metaphorically crawl into his skin, become part of him and make him part of her. There were nights when the passion between them was so intense, that Brennan imagined if she were to ever lose the man currently nestled between her parted thighs, she would shrivel up and die a slow and painful death. The partners could seemingly read each other's minds, complete each other's sentences, and acquiesce to whatever it was the other needed, regardless of whether or not it made sense to the one bowing down.

Brennan parted her legs to make room for Booth to settle comfortably atop her body. She closed her eyes as he raked his fingers through her bed-messed hair. She moaned when his abdomen pressed against her heated core. She hummed in approval when he bit her gently on the shoulder before soothing the sting with his soft, silky tongue. For Booth, she would do anything, and in that moment, she knew what he needed… His mind, his body, needed to release that fear, to dispel that built-up terror of losing her.

"You talked to me when I was unconscious, Baby…" Booth mumbled against the hollow of her throat as he licked her with the flat of his tongue. "I remember…" He sucked her beating pulse as it increased beneath his lips. "I couldn't answer you, but I heard you…" He shoved his hands beneath her arms and gently pushed the up so they rested on the pillow beside her head. "Your voice…your amazing, fucking gorgeous, sexy voice, is what kept me grounded, Temperance…Kept me from going into the darkness." He kissed the underside of her left bicep, then moved over to the right, repeating the same tender, needy kiss.

He braced himself up on his elbows, suspending himself above her torso and looked down into her darkened blue-gray eyes. "How are your ribs, babe?" Booth was concerned that the evening before may have been too much for her, though he desperately wanted to be inside her once again. They had been forced to avoid intercourse for nearly two months while their broken bodies healed; now that they had rekindled that physical contact, Booth was anxious for more; but he wouldn't risk harming her in any way.

Brennan brought her arms down and cupped his neck, pulling him down onto her body. "I'm fine, Booth." Her words were husky with desire and she covered his mouth with hers, sucking his lips hungrily. "I was so afraid, Booth… When they pulled you from the truck and hit the back of your head…" she spoke against his lips, feeling the overwhelming emotions she'd subconsciously pushed down suddenly boil to the surface. "I was terrified to lose you, Booth."

He wiggled his hips, spreading his own legs apart, which forced her to spread her thighs enough to accommodate the weight and width of his body, and she easily complied. Booth moved his mouth from hers again and began a journey south, eager to taste her body again. He licked across the upper swells of her breasts, playfully nipping along the way and he brought his wide hands down to squeeze her soft mounds, pushing them together so he could quickly and easily flick his tongue from one pert nipple to the other, drawing sweet, sultry mewls from his woman's chest, encouraging him for more.

Keeping his hands and fingers in place, kneading, tweaking and pinching her pretty pink nipples, his mouth continued its trip down to her firm, yet soft tummy, where he slowly French kissed her delicate bellybutton, something he loved doing once he learned how much it turned her on. He loved making her squirm, and whenever he spent ample time paying attention to her adorably tiny dimple-like button, she grew impossibly wet; he could smell her arousal and it only served to drive him wild.

"Booth…" her breathy plea was accompanied by her fingers twining into his messy spiked hair, tugging him up. He wordlessly complied, dragging his tongue up her belly, through the valley of her gorgeous breasts and up to her throat. He suckled the soft skin on her neck before sliding up and capturing her lips with his. Brennan cradled his head in her palms, desperate for relief from the escalating pressure building up at her core. She thrust her tongue into her lover's mouth, licking along the line of his teeth and tickling the roof of his mouth playfully.

Booth threaded his fingers into Brennan's hair, rubbing the pads of his fingers along her scalp as he turned her head to the left. He quickly moved his lips to her ear, letting his tongue reach out and pull her lobe into his mouth, where he teased her by holding it between his rolled lips and humming. She burst out laughing while circling her legs around his waist. He would never get enough of hearing her deep, chesty laugh, and he loved that he could do that to her, while simultaneously driving her towards a sexual explosion.

Blindly lining himself up against her soft folds, Booth's hips rotated until he was just about to enter her warmth. He opened his eyes and looked down at her relaxed expression as she met his gaze from under heavy lids. "I love you, Temperance." As a pretty pale blush washed across her cheeks, Booth pressed forward, entering her welcoming body in the most intimate and ancient of ways.

"I love you too," she whispered back as she reached for his lips. "So damn much, Booth…" They deepened their kiss, their surging lips and tongues matching the rhythm Booth set as he thrust in and out of her body slow and steady, deep and fully.

Cradling her head in his folded arms, Booth pulled her face into the crook of his neck. "You read to me, Bones…" his words were in time with his pumps. "The sports page…" He pressed a kiss to her temple. "The movie listings…complete with times and ratings…" He nuzzled into her errant curls. "Your _letters_… I fucking _love_ your letters, baby…" He craned his neck so he could place a kiss on her cheek.

As she listened to his words, his memories of while he was unconscious in the hospital, she fought back tears of relief that he was still with her – he was alive and well. She felt her chin quiver in happiness that her efforts while he was sleeping weren't in vain. She tightened her grip on the backs of his shoulders, as if she were determined to hold him in place for the rest of their lives, never again letting him get in harm's way. "Booth…" she breathed against his neck, feeling the bob of his Adam 's Apple just out of her lips' reach. "You heard me…"

"I heard you, Baby…Every goddamn word…I heard you. And I fought to come back to you… I'll always fight to come back to you." He rocked and rotated his hips, spreading her wide form within and filling her like no other could ever have done.

With that, she broke. The tears she was struggling to hold in erupted from behind her eyes. The lump in her throat gave way to a moaning cry. And her unexpected sudden orgasm triggered his own as she reached down her lover's back and pressed against the dimples just above his muscular ass, pressing him tighter against her body, ultimately resulting in pushing his erection further into her throbbing core until he couldn't push in any further. "Don't ever leave me, Booth…Don't ever leave… Not like that…" She cried into his neck as two months' worth of pent-up fear escaped from her carefully constructed barricades of protection. "Don't…Booth…_Seeley_…"

Slowing his body's rhythm as they both came down from their climaxes, Booth cradled her protectively beneath his large frame. "Shhh… It's OK, Baby…" He knew his girl only used his given first name when she was feeling particularly vulnerable, and only ever in the privacy of their home; he called her 'Temperance' far more than she ever called him 'Seeley', and that wasn't often at all. Rolling off to her side, Booth pulled her with him, so she was wrapped in his embrace. "We're safe, Bones…I know… it was scary…I know…I'm so sorry Baby…I'm so sorry you were hurt…" He pressed kisses into Brennan's hair as he felt her finally uncoil. This is what he'd been expecting for nearly 58 days; but until now, she'd been protecting herself from facing the truth of what happened to them, and how close they had truly come to dying. It was as if she was waiting to ensure both of their bodies had actually healed enough to be _together_ before she would let the facts invade her perspective.

After several minutes passed, it could have been an hour or more, neither really knew, Brennan lifted her head from Booth's chest and gazed up at him through red-rimmed and puffy eyes. "I wasn't sure you heard me talking to you, Booth. We didn't talk about your time in the hospital very much." She watched him nod slightly as he skipped his dark brown eyes across her features; she continued. "I mean, I knew when you responded to me about the guy-hugs that you had heard at least part of that letter, but I didn't know if you remembered it; and I didn't know if you heard the rest of what I read to you." She shrugged gently as she dragged her fingertips across his upper chest.

"I heard you, alright, Bones. And I loved it. I couldn't always understand every word, for whatever reason, my brain was fogged. But I heard your voice, the lilts and variations, the way you pretended to be a movie announcer when you read the movie times to me…" He grinned when she ducked her head in embarrassment. Hooking his finger beneath her chin, he drew her eyes back to his. "I can't imagine any sound more comforting or soothing to me, than your voice, Temperance Brennan…"

She curled one side of her lips up, giving her fiancée the sexy half-smile that she knew he loved. "You want me to read to you again?" She arched her eyebrow in question.

Booth's own smile grew in response to her question, and to her eagerness to do something that she knew pleased him. "Really? You would do that again?"

She nodded, pressing her lips into a tight line as if stifling a grin as she looked into the depths of his dark pools of molten chocolate. "If it's something you like, then yes… I will." She saw the approval in her man's eyes and pushed back slowly. "I'll be right back." She swung her legs out of bed and padded out of the bedroom, towards the living room, and returned a moment later holding an envelope in her hand. Slipping back between the sheets of his bed, which he now considered 'their' bed, she snuggled into Booth's side once more, pressing a kiss against his pec before glancing up at his radiant smile. "Comfy?"

He nodded eagerly, like a little kid who was about to be read his favorite bed-time story, and he wrapped his arm tightly around her shoulders. When she lowered her cheek to his shoulder once more, he pressed a kiss to the top of her head, waiting for her to begin reading the next letter in succession.

B/B/B/B

"Dear Booth,

"It has been 26 days since we parted in DC.

"I am at our new satellite base camp. It appears that this location is quite promising; already the digs have produced lucrative results with artifacts. No additional skeletons except for the one I told you about in my last letter, but with the amount of village detriment we're unearthing, it should only be a matter of days before we find something more. Well, I hope so, anyway. While I find the artifacts interesting, it isn't my area of expertise, as you know. I am far more intrigued when I can hold ancient bones in my hands; when I can run my fingers along the smooth edges, or rough ones if the case may be… I am more in my element when I can look at various injuries or calcium build-ups and determine what kind of life the individual led while he or she walked these grounds.

"My tent here is much smaller, but it is still private. The other two supervisors are bunking together and while they are both pleasant enough women, I turned down their offer to stay with them, explaining that I prefer solitude in the evenings so I can think about my day and write. I think they assume I am working on my new book, and I didn't correct them. But in reality, I prefer to be alone while I write to you. I feel that I can express myself better on paper than I can with words, and I am more at ease without worrying if someone is observing me or my reactions to what I tell you.

"Are you still keeping well? I have some unfortunate news. We won't have another courier for a month. A large shipment of rations was brought to the main camp yesterday morning and rather than bringing a portion here after leaving there, the delivery men left everything at the main camp and left the transportation of our portion up to the interns. They claimed that it was not in their 'contract' to deliver to two locations… So, three of the interns brought our supplies to our location late yesterday afternoon. Daisy was among them and she was hesitant to approach me. I think she realizes what a mistake she made when she revealed your nickname for me, and she hasn't decided if I've forgiven her or not. And to be honest, I haven't decided either, but I was polite and professional. Nothing more, nothing less.

"I had another dream about you, Booth. I saw you in your army fatigues. You were sitting in a tent looking at something – a book or magazine or something; I couldn't tell you what it was. But that wasn't the point of the dream anyway. You looked so sad, Booth. Even now, thinking back, my chest hurts when I think of how you looked. And it was only a dream! People came and went through the tent, some acknowledging you and some not. And whenever you answered a greeting, you kept your eyes trained on the object in your hands. Then, even though I know this makes no sense whatsoever, I was there. I walked into the tent…I can still remember the feel of the sand and dirt giving way underfoot, and the dusty odor in the air, and the extreme aridness… I walked in and sat down across from you, and at first you didn't seem to notice. Then, almost in slow motion, you raised your eyes from what you were studying and met mine, and you smiled… That wide, toothy smile that you wear anytime you get really excited about something. Only, there was no reason for you to be that happy, because it was only me… I know that look – it's the look you get when your Flying Hockey team wins (What are they called again? Is it the Flyers? That seems too basic…) or when the Philadelphia baseball Fanatic guy runs up to the camera at a ball game and looks inside the lens, as if he can see the people on the other side. It's the look you get when you see Parker after a week apart. It's the look you get when we close a case and go to Founding Fathers to celebrate. And… as I thought about it after waking from the dream, it's the look you get when we haven't seen each other for a day or two, and you've stopped by my place with bagels and coffee in the morning… or when you show up at my door with Thai at 11:30 at night, because you saw my lights on…

"Booth, do you feel happy when you see me? Or is this my imagination? I know that when a person reaches REM sleep and dreams, the visions are nothing but fragments of daily life strung together incoherently. But this dream was so vivid, Booth – the feel of the desert, the smell of the heat, your smile. I could even smell a faint bit of your cologne when I woke, though that is probably because I am currently using your t-shirt as a pillow case (it was much softer than my standard issue covering and, well, it smelled like you…or like your detergent anyway… and the faint cologne it absorbed by being in your drawer, no doubt, with your other belongings.) But nevertheless, I could smell 'your' unique smell.

"But my question, really, is this: when you see me, and we haven't seen each other, are you as happy to see me as I am to see you? I don't show my emotions very well, Booth, but I quite enjoy seeing you; I want you to know that. I think, as I contemplate my memories, that you are, in fact, pleased when we 'hang out' after not working on a case for a few days. I don't know where I'm going with this story, Booth, but I just felt like I had to write and tell you about the dream and your smile and the desert feel and the smell…and I wanted you to know that I like seeing you on our off-hours. I don't think I ever told you that, and maybe it needed to be said.

"I was thinking about Parker today when I was working. A tiny deer came out of the forest and watched us. She didn't appear to fear our presence, she seemed curious. I took a picture of her so I could show Parker when I go home. I thought he might like to see it. He has never indicated to me that he likes deer, but he was the one for whom I took the picture.

"I am quite tired, so I am going to end this letter now. Once I woke from the dream last night, I didn't go back to sleep, I just wasn't tired after that. Then we had a very full day of work and a late (but sufficient!) dinner. And now I am exhausted…

"So, I hope you are well. I hope you are as happy as you can be in that place and that you find your work fulfilling. You are a tremendously brave man, Booth, and an asset to the Army and to our Country. I am very proud of you… I don't know if that means anything to you; but I know I like it when I think that I've done something that makes you proud of me, so I thought I should tell you that I am proud of you; proud to call you my partner, my best friend…I'm honored to have you in my life, Booth. And I hope that you, in some small way, feel a little bit of that towards me, though I would never ask you in person. I just find that it's easier for me to say things in writing… so there you have it. I hope I make you proud to know me. I strive to do things that will please you, though I know I often fail, please know that I try.

"Good night, Booth.

"I miss you so much….

"I wish you pleasant dreams.

"Always Yours,

Bones"

B/B/B/B

When she folded the letter and replaced it into the envelope, she turned up to see Booth's expression. She was shocked to see that his eyes were wet with unshed tears. "I'm always so proud of you, Bones…And I'm humbled to think that I would do anything to make you proud of me…" He palmed her cheek. "You've made me the happiest man alive, Bones. And the luckiest. I _love_ being your partner…"

Brennan wrapped her arm around his waist and pressed a kiss to the healing scar on his chest; the new one, which was not far away from the old one that she knew so well. "Thank you for letting me be your partner, Booth…It's made all the difference."

"Bones?" Booth asked quietly after several silent minutes.

"Hmm?" She snuggled into his side.

"Do you know what Rivas ordered Avilla to do to you when he was holding you against the truck?"

Brennan hesitated briefly. "Yes." Her reply was small, quiet.

"He threatened you, right? Although I could only pick out a few words, I knew them to be threats."

A shiver ran down her spine. "Yes. He threatened to kill me, Booth." She looked up to meet his enquiring eyes. "Do you want to know specifically what he said?"

Looking into her stormy blue eyes, Booth made the decision not to make her relive it. "No. It's OK. I just assumed you would have understood it." He pressed a kiss to her forehead as he felt her sigh in relief at not having to repeat the words. "All that matters is that we're OK, Bones."

"Thank you, Booth." She pressed a kiss to his throat and settled back into his embrace, squeezing her eyes shut at the memory of the words that were spat at her captor by his boss. As hard as she tried, however, she would never forget the threat as it replayed in her mind.

_"Kill the bitch, but make sure __**he's**__ watching when you do. I want him to know before he dies that he __**failed**__ to save her. Have some 'fun' with her first if you want... Whatever you do, make sure Booth sees __**everything**__. That will be his punishment. Then you can do whatever you want with him." _

She looped her arm around his waist and clung to her boyfriend, fighting to ignore the echoing words in her mind, knowing that Booth would do anything in his power to always keep her safe. And she vowed to herself to do the same for him.

**Postscript A/N**

**So, there you have the letter from Day 26. When are we gonna find out why she decided not to send them!? AGGHHHH! I know, the suspense is killing me too… Oh, wait… I already know the answer. **whew** **

**Heh heh**

**Yeah, that was mean. **

**Anyway, did you like it? Please review! **

**And if you haven't started it yet, please check out CYSHAB's sequel 'Death, Plus One,' which is currently underway. I hope you enjoy! **

**Peace & love my friends, **

**~jazzy**


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